The Hunt
by ImStillRJ
Summary: The BAU team is the best at one thing, hunting monsters.  But the team is about to discover what it feels like to have their roles reversed when three members of the team become the hunted. Whole team fic.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own them, I just play with them.

The first thing to register to his dawning consciousness was nausea. Not the subtle kind of flip in your gut when the smell of something rotting hits your nose but the kind that made his stomach roil and if he were standing he may have fallen over. Instead he lay still and freezing on a solid surface of concrete in a dark room. He forced himself to take a deep breath through his nose and slowly released it through his teeth. When he succeeded in keeping his breakfast secured in his stomach he repeated the action until it had subsided. Slowly he pushed himself into a sitting position and leaned tiredly against the concrete wall behind him noting his wrist gripped tightly in the ring of a metal shackle. His eyes followed its adjoined chain to where it secured him to the floor behind him. He tugged at it a few times, wincing as it dug into a bloody gash he hadn't noticed was there before turning his attention to his surroundings. His vision blurred and swayed for a moment before finally focusing in on the dark damp room around him. A single wooden door stood as the only fixture in the room, large and heavy looking it contrasted the chipping white paint of the cracking concrete walls disappearing into the dark shadows.

His chest tightened when he found Prentiss, lying on her side awkwardly with her back to him.

"Prentiss," he called out, pushing himself to his knees to get a better view of her, somewhat relieved at the small motion of her breathing. She didn't stir and he tried again a little louder, "Prentiss!"

A low groan to his left had his head whipping around to see Spencer Reid rolling over onto his back, his own metal restraint thumping to the floor. He groaned again no doubt fighting off the same bout of nausea that Hotch had awakened to. Reid's eyes were clenched shut and he struggled to breathe through his occasional gag reflex.

"Reid?" he finally spoke once the young doctor appeared to have gotten his stomach to settle.

Reid's eyes flew open and his head jerked up from the floor and turned to look at Hotch with surprise.

"Hotch? Where are we?"

"I don't know," he confessed.

The last thing he remembered was driving them through the rain on their way to the home of a potential witness in their latest case. He vaguely remembered Reid asking if they were lost and Prentiss grumbling about the turn in the weather.

"Someone hit us." Reid offered, rolling over to his side and grimacing as he jarred his injured shoulder.

This gave Hotch's muddled brain the jumpstart it needed to bring up the images. They had been driving along a bumpy road, the rain was coming down hard, and then there was a truck. It had come from what looked like a private driveway. Its driver timing it to perfection, gaining speed and colliding with the SUV with a violent shattering of glass and screeching twisted metal as it forced them over the embankment and down a steep ravine.

As soon as the memory of what had happened hit him he pushed himself to his feet stretching the chain of his restraint taught and flexing the sore muscles in his back and neck. He had definitely hit his head at some point in the roll over but it didn't explain how they had somehow moved from the mangled SUV at the bottom of a ravine to wherever they were at now.

"Are you alright?" He asked Reid, noting the pallor of his face and the way he winced when moving his left arm.

"Yeah, I think I just sprained my shoulder a little in the crash. I don't think I hit my head which doesn't explain waking up here." he rambled his brain finally warming up, "I can't say the same for Emily though, that truck hit on her side."

The same thought had crossed his mind as well and he moved away from the wall as far as his restraint would allow, trying to make out the condition of his other agent. He stood on his tip toes and could just make out a dark red stain of blood on the collar of her shirt and matted in her hair.

"Prentiss? Emily, wake up." Her only response was the gentle rise and fall of her breathing.

"I think someone drugged us." Reid said interrupting him while scratching at a puncture mark in his arm. "He crashed into us and then drugged us make sure we didn't wake up before we got here. Wherever here is."

"Do you think it's our Unsub?"

"Who else could it be?"

"So he targeted us and lured us out to talk to a witness so he could get the drop on us?"

"It's the only thing that really makes sense. Someone knew we would be on that road and timed it perfectly."

"He's more resourceful than we thought."

Their conversation was silenced by a soft clicking sound coming from the door at the opposite wall near Emily's feet. The hairs on Hotch's neck stood as he stood stalk still, waiting. The clicking stopped and the door slowly creaked open inch by inch until they could make out the towering form of a man as he emerged from the shadows. As the man stepped into the room, Hotch ticked away as many mental notes of him as he could make out. _Tall, large build, physically fit, mid 30's maybe early 40's, brown hair…_

"Good morning Gentlemen." He said through a smile of a coffee stained overbite and leaned over to study Prentiss's face. "I see Agent Prentiss is still sleeping soundly."

"You're making a big mistake here." Hotch said sternly. "People will be looking for us."

"Oh I think that's a very safe bet Agent Hotchner. In fact I'm thinkin they're probably just about to start wonderin where ya'll are at and if you're about done with that witness interview."

"How do you know about that?" Reid asked timidly as he pulled his feet under him and stood.

"Ah, now Doc, I'm bettin you're a pretty smart guy. You can probably figure that one out yourself."

"There was no witness." Hotch answered solemnly.

"Oh, no, there was a witness. She's, well let's just say she had a change of heart."

"What do you want with us?"

"Have you ever been hunting Agent Hotchner?" He asked, kneeling next to Emily, making Hotch tense. "It's all a bit unfair to me. Sitting in wait by a pond or a river for something to just walk into your crosshairs, completely oblivious to the dangers around? You take the shot and watch as its life drains away before bringing it home and slicing through its flesh, preparing it so that it could maintain the life of the one who killed it. I baited the trap and waited. You all just drove into my sights, so I took the shot."

"But we aren't dead." Reid pointed out the flaw in his logic.

The man patted Prentiss' leg and stood up with a sigh.

"Like I said Doctor, I never felt the waiting game was very fair. You all hunt criminals, the men of this world who society has claimed bad men or evil, monsters. How do you think those men feel, knowing you are on their trail, hunting them and when you catch up to them, their lives as they know it is over?"

"I imagine they are afraid, angry, some of them maybe even excited." Reid answered intelligently paying no mind to Hotch who was glaring harshly, analyzing every word and facial twitch.

Without another word he smiled and nodded at Reid before turning on his heels and striding back toward the door. He took another look and the woman on the floor, turned slowly to face them and reached into his jacket pocket. He pulled a small key ring from the flannel and with a sinister smile waved the small key up for them to see before tossing it into the shadows behind Emily before stepping out of the room and pulling the door shut behind him.

"What do you think Reid?" he asked quietly, eyes still focused on the shadows holding the key.

Reid thought for a moment before speaking the words that Hotch was already thinking.

"I think we're about to find out what it's like to be hunted."

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><p>Author's Note: Hope you liked it. I'm looking forward to writing it but just so you know, I write faster when motivated by reviews...hint hint. If you have read my other story '<em>A Matter of Time'<em> I will finish it eventually. This one is just more fun. Having said that, you may proceed...


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Holy Smoke Batgirl! I cannot believe the volume of readers I got for this story in its infancy! Special thanks to _HGRHfan35_ and _EmmaBerlin_ for being the first to REVIEW my story and motivate me to continue writing it! To the reading!

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><p>Voices, Or at least what she thought were voices stabbed through the fog in her head, beckoning her from her sleep. She took a moment to try to understand the voices, or at least recognize who they belonged to before mentally berating herself for the amount of liquor she must have consumed for the cadence of drums banging and crashing away in her brain. A sudden flip in her stomach forced a groan from deep in her chest and she instantly knew she was going to be sick.<p>

Hotch shot to his feet before the groan had even subsided back into Emily's chest. He called her name gently and watched as her hand blindly reached for some invisible hold, shaking as it met the wall in front of her and flopped back to the floor. For the hundredth time since waking up he wished he could see more of her then just her back.

"Prentiss, wake up." he called over to her, pulling in vain at his shackled wrist.

Emily turned her head into the floor, resting her forehead against its cool surface while praying the panting of air from her lungs would ease the knots in her stomach. When another muffled voice broke into the darkness of her brain she finally recognized its owner and for a moment was embarrassed that she might puke in front of her boss. After a moment, she slid her hand up her side until it was pressed palm down against the concrete near her head and slowly pushed herself into a semi upright position. Still not willing to open her eyes to the pain she knew would follow, she reached out until her hand made contact wig the solid surface of the wall. With another groan of pain she twisted against a jabbing pain in her side to rest her back against the wall in a slouch.

Hotch and Reid watched their friend struggle into a semi sitting position and were instantly concerned by the amount of effort it had taken her and by the fact that she didn't seem aware of her odd surrounding at all. Now that she was facing the m they got a clear view of the large dark oozing gash at her hairline that had dripped blood down into her ear and soaked through her collar and down the front of her shirt. Hotch made a mental note of the way her hand had gripped on her side with a sound of pain at her movements. As soon as she settled against the wall he noticed her body begin to relax and his chest tightened in panic.

"Prentiss!" he barked, his voice echoing through the dark room.

She flinched, startled awake by the sound of her name reverberating off the walls and winced at the pain in her head.

"I'm sorry Prentiss but I need you to stay awake ok." he said quieter and she blinked heavily, fighting to focus on his face.

"What happened?" she finally managed to ask.

Both men released the air they held in their chests throughout her trip from the floor to the wall. She still did not look well but she was awake and talking and that was a start.

"We were forced off the road. I think the man holding us here is our Unsub. You've been out for quite awhile. How do you feel?"

For a moment she wanted to laugh at the preposterous question. Of course she felt like she'd been hit in the head by a truck, but the concerned looks on their faces pleaded with her to be alright. Unable to decide how to answer the question she lifted her hand with a weak thumbs up. At the movement she noticed the weight of the thick handcuff on her wrist and blinked at it a few times confused then looked back to her friends.

"Wonderful." She grumbled sardonically and dropped her hand to her lap. "Where are we?"

"In a basement of some sort I think." Reid offered. "There aren't any windows and the walls appear to be just painted concrete."

"Prentiss, he tossed some keys back into the corner behind you somewhere." Hotch spoke once he had decided she was coherent enough to understand. "Do you think you can reach them?"

"Keys?" she asked, grimacing as her ribs protested against the mere thought of moving away from the support of the wall.

"I think there might be a key to our restraints on it."

She peered around the corner and eyed the slight glimmer of the key ring. Though they were only a few feet away from her, they may have been miles when it came to forcing her aching body from its current position to get to them.

"Why would he give us keys?"

"I think he's toying with us." Reid offered. "You were unconscious when he threw them over there. I think he wants us to feel helpless knowing that escape is only feet away from us and yet we may not be able to get to it."

"I'm not so sure." Hotch disagreed. "He's testing us."

Emily's brow furrowed as she tried to follow along with the events that had happened in the room before she had awaken to join them. Hotch glanced at her for a moment, satisfied that she was following along and continued.

"He talked a lot about hunting. In his eyes, he is a sportsman. I think he wants us to escape because he needs the challenge of hunting us back down."

"There's no sport in killing something that's chained to a wall." Prentiss added dryly and Hotch nodded.

"That's why he moved us from the SUV. We would have known our way back and he knows that someone would come looking for us and would start in that area." Reid caught on.

They all sat silent for a few minutes, the severity of their situation sinking in and theories and what to do weighing on their minds.

"So what do we do?" Prentiss finally asked.

"Nothing." Hotch answered quietly.

"Nothing? We can't just sit here and freeze to death Hotch."

"If we run, we play right into his game and we risk losing." Reid affirmed. "He's got a huge advantage on us as he knows where we are. It's his own controlled environment. He may have even gone to the extremes of setting traps for us."

"So if there's a cuff key on there we may have a chance in fending him off if and when he comes back to see why we aren't escaping." Prentiss stated through a sigh before turning to look around the corner at the keys.

"Take your time Emily," Hotch instructed with a concerned tone. "He probably won't be coming back for awhile."

"I'm alright," she lied, "My butt's starting to freeze to the floor anyway."

With that she carefully pulled her feet up and braced her hand that wasn't around her ribs to the floor and hauled herself up onto her knees. Taking a few deep breaths to calm her nerves and ease the pain in her head she put her left foot under her and with the support of the wall heaved herself to her feet, clenching her teeth until the wave of dizziness passed. With one hand against the wall for support she quickly took a few steps until the shackle on her wrist stopped her from going any further. She swore and attempted to collapse her hand down small enough to squeeze through its grasp but the pain in her thumb told her that it was no use without dislocating the digit. _Okay Emily_, she thought to herself, _the guys are depending on you to get those damn keys. Plan B._ She carefully sat down onto her haunches and stretched her leg out toward the keys, the toe of her shoe just touching them.

"You've got to be kidding me," She groaned and finally gave in and sat down, pulling her wrist painfully against the restraint and stretched her foot as far as possible, finally able to slide the keys with the toe of her shoe a foot closer, then another until she could pick them up with a shaking hand.

"Got 'em" she grinned, dangling them in front of her by the small round handcuff key for the guys to see, before jabbing it into the lock of her restraint and grinning as they fell away and she pushed herself back up to her feet to help the her friends.

The loud click and creak of the door to her left made her freeze as a burly man stepped in. A sharp echo bounced off the walls as he slowly clapped his hands together, eyeing Prentiss with a predatory gleam.

"Well done Agent." He chided in a cold and menacing voice.

"Who are you?" Hotch's voice came out an octave higher then he meant it to and Emily's heart stopped for a moment when she realized that this man was not that same one Hotch and Reid had been contacted by earlier. Their Unsub had a partner.

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><p>Dun Dun Duh...Chapter 3 is already in the works folks. Want to read it? Just hit that little review button and let me know!<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

_Author's Note: Sorry for the little wait guys and gals. I am amazed and flabbergasted at the amount of attention this story has gotten! Thank you to all those who reviewed, it really motivates me to keep going. This story has taken a turn in a direction I hadn't initially planned for it to go, but I really am happy with its new direction. I hope you are too! Read on!_

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><p>Prentiss quickly backed away from the beast of a man until her back made contact with the wall, granting her only a few feet of distance between them. With a sinister smile he stepped towards her causing both of the other agents to flinch and held his hand up, motioning for her to hand him the keys. Not sure what else to do she lifted her hand and dropped the keys into his palm with a jingle.<p>

"It appears my friend has tried to give you a head start." He sneered, "He bet me that you would be halfway to the woods by now."

He turned his head to the other two agents and continued.

"But you haven't even released your friends yet. This game of his may be over sooner than we thought."

"What game?" she asked flatly. "What do you want with us?"

He turned back to her and grinned.

"You're the expert, you tell me."

Emily glared at him despite her vision beginning to blur at the edges from the sudden adrenaline rush she had suffered when he entered the room. She wasn't really sure what she missed during the time she had been unconscious, but she was becoming more and more confused by the moment.

"How are we supposed to play the game if we don't know the rules?" Reid spoke up, drawing the attention of the giant away from Emily.

"Sorry kid, this game has no rules."

"If there aren't any rules, then how does someone win?"

"Life is all a matter of survival. If you survive, you live to play another day."

"And what do you get out of it?"

"You ask a lot of questions kid. You waste a lot of time."

"I'm chained to a wall. I think I've got plenty of time to waste."

Reid jingled the chain from the shackle on his wrist to emphasis his point. The man arched and eyebrow and shrugged at him.

"Games can be challenging Doctor Reid. Some challenges are easier than others. Those cuffs are just one of many to come. It's a race to the finish and right now," he pointed back to Prentiss, "she's winning."

He turned on his heel and strode smoothly toward the door, winking at Prentiss as he passed her.

"Wait," Reid called out before he had closed the door, "Who are you?"

The man grinned again, pausing in the doorway for a split second.

"I'm the referee." He smiled and slammed the door behind him, leaving the team a little shaken and more than a little confused.

"What the hell is going on?" Prentiss groaned, shuffling across the room to where her friends were standing. Once there, she braced herself against the wall with her hand and took a few deep breaths, forcing the blurry edges from her brain again. She had had concussions before, but this one was a doozy. She just prayed she would be able to stay on her feet long enough to get them out of whatever crazy game they had been forced into.

"Sit down for a few minutes Prentiss. Take a break while we figure out how to get out of here."

She wanted to argue with him, to tell him she was fine, but the stern look in his dark eyes quieted her protest and she slid down the wall between them until she was sitting with her feet out in front of her. Hotch stared at her for a moment, worried about her. He glanced up to Reid, who paced in short strides, chewing on his thumb in obvious deep thought. Hotch decided to give him some time to organize the complex stream of information flowing through his genius mind so instead of speaking, he slid down the wall to sit next to Prentiss.

He could feel her eyes on him and when he turned to meet her gaze, he couldn't help but be drawn to the congealed red liquid that stood out brightly against the paleness of her face.

"It looks like it finally stopped bleeding." He said quietly, pointing at the wound.

"Must have hit the window or something in the crash. You know how head wounds bleed." She replied, gently prodding her forehead and drawing her fingers back to look at the liquid coating them.

"You know, you really should stop hitting things with your head Prentiss. I hear it's not very good for you." He teased with the dry expression that only Hotch could pull off.

"I'll keep that in mind," she chuckled, "You're bleeding too by the way."

Hotch glanced down at the blood soaked patch on his dirty shirtsleeve. He had forgotten all about the pain in his arm that he had felt when first waking up in this mess. That seemed like days ago when it couldn't have been more than a few hours. Carefully he undid the button on his shirt cuff and pulled his sleeve back to his elbow revealing a deep angry gash. The red stained shard of glass protruding from the wound screamed at him exactly how the gash had gotten there and he scowled at the thought of what the rest of their aching bodies must look like after being dragged unconsciously through the amount of glass that must have been present in the destroyed SUV.

He carefully pulled the glass from the wound, biting back a light hiss and tossed it aside before pulling his sleeve back down and leaving it hanging loosely around his wrist. He smirked over at Prentiss as if to say_; "see, good as new." _She rolled her eyes at him and rested her head back against the wall exhausted.

The light conversation was interrupted by a quiet sound that began with a light tapping but quickly grew into a steady rushing sound.

"Guys that sounds like rain," Reid stated, pulling his thumbnail from his teeth and pressing his ear against the wall to listen.

Prentiss simply raised an eyebrow at Hotch as he too shot up from the floor and moved close to the concrete. Her body and head hurt, she was freezing, and they were being held against their will by two crazy men and had yet to understand why. She didn't care about a little rain and struggled to find the explanation in her brain on why her male counterparts were suddenly so excited.

"I thought we were in a basement." Hotch stated, the light bulb in his brain showing in his eyes.

"If we were, we wouldn't be able to hear the rain." Reid rattled. "We're in a bunker!"

"Why is that better?" Prentiss groused.

"Because, I think I know where we are!" he exclaimed, "When the town of Newton was built back in 1927 its very existence revolved around copper mining. These forests are filled with old mine shafts and small mining camps. When the Second World War broke out, these small mining camps boomed from the massive demand in copper for ammunition and supplies. The miners fortified their camps with concrete bunkers to store the munitions in until they could be transported. There are only two remaining mining campsites that have standing bunkers and they're both located about thirty-five miles south of Newton."

"Thirty-five miles in an awfully long way on foot Reid." Prentiss said, hating herself for having to point out a flaw in his history lesson.

"We wouldn't have to make it all the way to Newton." He replied in a high pitched voice. "There is a Ranger's station only six miles to the east of the camp."

"Hold on a minute Reid," Hotch interrupted. "We need to figure out exactly what we're dealing with in our Unsubs before we can start planning any sort of escape. We know we have multiple unsubs, both of which are very physically fit and seem to be of average to above average intelligence. Both appear to have Alpha personalities, which mean they're dangerous, but maybe not as coordinated as they could be. The only thing that really throws me off is why the first one gave us the keys."

"He's impatient." Emily spoke as she pulled herself to stand with them. "He didn't want to wait for us to figure a way out ourselves."

"It's possible. He did seem fixated on hunting and mentioned that he didn't like waiting for his prey." Reid agreed.

"Impatience leads to mistakes. We can use that against him."

"It's the other one I'm more afraid of. He's too calm, too calculated."

"I agree Hotch, but we need a plan. Do we risk staying here and boring them into taking action, or do we risk running." Emily hoped for the latter. The Goliath Unsub had unnerved her with his dark eyes and menacing smile. She wanted to avoid as much close quarter company with him as possible.

"They drugged us to bring us way out here so we wouldn't know where to run Hotch." Reid reasoned. "We have the advantage now that we know where to go."

It was moments like this that Hotch hated being the leader of the team. Making the decision that could possibly lead them all to their deaths or ordering them to stay put where they may also die. He knew which ever plan of action he chose they would follow without hesitation which put that much more weight on his shoulders. They trusted him with their lives and he couldn't let them down. Studying each of their anxious faces for a moment, he knew exactly what they would have to do. If either of their actions could lead to their deaths, they had to choose the one that gave them chance. If they were going down, they were going to go down fighting.

"We need to get out of these cuffs." He said finally.

Reid and Prentiss didn't need any further instruction. The decision had been made. They were getting out of their concrete prison, and going home. Hunters be damned.

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><p><em>Author's Note: Hope you liked it and that it was worth the short wait. I am already halfway finished with Chapter 4 and as you can imagine, the rest of the team will be making their appearance! Oh and <span>HGRHFan35<span>…don't worry, I couldn't possibly kill them, that would make me sad!_


	4. Chapter 4

_Author's Note: WARNING: Writing a story with this much rain in it will eventually make you feel cold...just sayin. Read on!_

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><p>Jennifer Jareau leaned up against the window frame of the small briefing room window staring out at the horizontal downpour that flooded the uneven street that led into the parking lot of the Newport Police station. After the cell phone she had pressed to her ear clicked over to voicemail, she swore quietly and spoke into it.<p>

"Hey Em, its JJ. Just trying to touch base with you guys. This storm is coming in pretty hard down here and we're starting to worry. Call me back when you get this."

She clicked off the call and turned back to the remaining members of her team. Rossi and Morgan had taken over a small section of the station's desks and had quickly scattered files and maps over three of the four surfaces.

"Emily didn't answer either?" Morgan asked from his chair.

"I'm worried."

"They may just be out of signal range. That house was quite a way out there." Rossi offered.

"I know. I just have a bad feeling. I don't like this kind of weather."

Morgan gave her a sympathetic smile and turned his attention back to the files in front of him. He would never admit it to JJ and risk worrying her further, but he also had a nagging feeling in his stomach that told him that something was amiss. Pushing the thought aside for the time being, he studied the file in hand, forcing himself to ignore the map on the table that highlighted the route that Hotch and the others had taken to the witness's home.

"So this guy is all over the place with victimology," he said once JJ had sat down. "Jerry Kesler was a 26 year old school teacher, Michelle Jones a 35 year old bartender who never came home from work and Nicholas and Cheryl Wilks, both in their late 30s disappeared while camping up in Ridgebrook. All of the bodies were found near populated recreational sites and nobody sees anything?"

"The only thing we have that links them together is that they all shopped at an outdoor supply store on Hillsboro Street called K2 Supply, and that all of them were outdoor enthusiasts." Rossi added.

"Have they interviewed all of the employees at K2 to see if there may be any regular customers that may have had contact with the victims?" JJ asked.

Rossi nodded.

"It's a small community with an unlimited supply of outdoor adventures. Outdoor enthusiasts come from all over the country for the hiking trails and fishing spots out here, not to mention all the old mine shafts to explore. K2 is the only big supply store for miles so of course they all would have shopped there."

"What about the employees?"

Morgan had hit speed dial on his phone before JJ had even finished asking the question. He tapped the button to switch the device over to speaker phone and set it in the center of the desk while it rang.

"Three hours since I last heard from you, I was feeling neglected." Garcia's voice chirped through the speaker.

"Hey baby girl, I need you to bring an employee list for K2 Outdoor Supply on Hillsboro Street here in Newport."

"Twenty seven employees."

"Anything jump out at you on any of them? Criminal history or customer complaints?"

"Not really. A twenty-one year old Chaz Roberts has an old minor drug possession charge for smoking some pot behind his high school but nothing that would warrant him being a serial killer."

"Garcia, open up our victim's credit card reports and check the dates on any purchases made at K2. Then call the shop and see if you can get copy of the employees work schedule to cross reference to see if they had any of the same employees working on all of the dates that our victims were there."

He could hear her fingers gracefully tap dancing across her glitter spattered keyboard and in less than a minute she brought up the report.

"Okay, I've got the credit reports. I'll call the shop for the schedule and call you back."

"Thanks Baby girl."

"Garcia out." She hung up, dropping the room back into silence.

Nearly an hour later they had compiled a short list of possible leads to check out when Rossi looked up at the clock on the wall and then out the window and the rain that had died down to a light patter. He checked his watch against the clock with growing concern. They still hadn't heard from the rest of their team.

"JJ, try calling Hotch again. It looks like the weather is calming down a little."

JJ quickly retrieved her cell phone from her pocket and hit the speed dial for their Unit Chief. The monotone ringback buzzed in her ear a few times before picking up.

"This is SSA Aaron Hotchner of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit. I am currently unavailable but.."

JJ hung up without listening to the rest of the recording and shook her head at Rossi. Morgan pushed himself from his chair and shuffled through the papers on the desk and grabbing the map from the stack and grabbing his jacket off the back of his chair.

"Where are you going?" JJ asked.

"I'm going to go look for them," he answered, "It's not like them to be out of contact for so long. Especially in weather like this. Even if they didn't have any cell service they would have found a landline and let us know they were alright by now."

"I'm going with you." She replied pulling on her own jacket and snatching up a Newton PD baseball cap from a nearby desk and pulling her ponytail through it as she pulled it onto her head.

"We're all going." Rossi added.

Suited up in their coats and borrowed hats and bundled up as much as possible against the storm, they left a message with a PD officer of where they were going in case their friends tried to contact them, and exited the building to run through the rain to the SUV.

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><p>Back in the bunker, Hotch was pulling with all of his might at the chain that secured him to the wall. The chain held tight and he let out a frustrated huff.<p>

"I think it's safe to say it's not coming out of the wall." He grumbled and attempted for the third time to pull his hand through the center of the cuff.

"Do either of you have something we could use to pick the locks?" Reid asked, awkwardly digging into his right pocket with his left hand, pulling out a piece of gum and dropping it to the floor.

"No." Prentiss answered immediately and Hotch patted his pocket and shook his head.

Emily sighed and blinked against the headache that had been gradually getting worst for the last hour. She dropped her chin to her chest to rest for a moment but was distracted by a glint of light from Hotch's chest. Suddenly very alert she grabbed his tie, surprising him. He craned his neck to see what she had suddenly found so interesting just as her fingers expertly yanked at the knot and pulled the tie from his collar.

"Reid, can you use this?" she asked, pulling the tack from the material, holding it up for him to see and dropped the tie to the floor.

"Let me see it."

The youngest agent's eyes lit up and she dropped the metal pin into his hand and silently prayed that their boss's strict business attire choice would be the literal key to getting them out of their prison.

Reid shoved the pin in to the keyhole and clenched his jaw in concentration. They watched as he expertly twisted and wiggled the makeshift key, slipping it out and starting over. Finally the lock gave and the band of the cuff swung loosely from its hold.

"I will never make fun of your magic tricks again." Prentiss beamed brightly and patted him on the back.

"You make fun of my magic?" he feigned hurt then returned her smile and went to work on Hotch's cuff.

Nearly fifteen minutes later, the shackle fell away from Hotch's wrist with a clatter.

"Good work Reid." Hotch grinned and rubbed at the bruises around his wrist. "Now we just have to get out of here."

They shuffled over to the door on the opposite side of the room and Hotch cautiously reached for the door knob, not in the least bit surprised when it didn't turn.

"Well Houdini, can you open a door with a tie tack?" Prentiss grumbled.

Reid shook his head no and shrugged his shoulders, forgetting for a moment that one of them hurt.

"Now what?"

"We wait for one of them to come back. There are three of us, and so far they've only been coming in here one at a time. If we can take him down when he comes in then we can make a run for it. Hopefully before the other one catches on."

They slowly wandered the room, looking for anything that they might be able to use as a weapon and when Hotch knew Prentiss was out of ear shot he tapped Reid on the shoulder and spoke quietly.

"Reid, it may be up to you and I to take this guy down. Emily is in no condition for a fight. Especially if she's going to have run for it right after. When we see an opening, we take it. I'll try and get him against the wall and you can use the chains. If we can secure him, it may just buy us a little more time before the other one comes after us."

Reid nodded his understanding while watching Prentiss, who on top of a severe concussion was beginning to shiver visibly against the cold in the room. Hotch was right, she was in no condition to fight off a man twice her size. He just didn't want to be the one that had to tell her that.

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><p><em>Author's Note: Click that little button there and let me know if you liked it! The next few chapters are in the works and will be a bit longer since I have some time off of work to work on them. <em>


	5. Chapter 5

_Author's Note: Okay guys and gals, this Chapter went a little darker then I originally imagined so if you aren't a fan of a little bit of violence...well how are you a Criminal Minds fan? You've been warned and as always Thank you so much for your reviews! Read on!_

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><p>"This is insane. Why would anyone live way out here?" Morgan swore as he swerved the SUV to avoid hitting a particularly deep hole in the rain rutted road ahead of him.<p>

JJ bent forward, peering past the frantically sloshing windshield wiper at the road. It was a small one lane path through the dense forests that in normal weather conditions would have been a bumpy ride. But now, after hours of hard rain and whipping winds, parts of it had been washed out and it had become so muddy that they slid around and bounced off of rocks that had fallen off the mountain side. With a sigh, she sat back in her seat and peered out her window out at the dark forest. She wondered when exactly the sun had gone down making it nearly impossible to see anything. A glint of something red caught her eye and for a moment she ignored it, until the nagging in her stomach jumped up and tightened in her chest.

"Morgan stop the car!" She yelled, smacking him in the shoulder for emphasis.

She pushing her door open and hopping out before the vehicle was at a complete stop and Morgan and Rossi followed her in surprise. JJ jogged a few feet back down the road, waving her flashlight to where she had seen the object and she peered off over the embankment and into the trees. Her heart stopped in her chest as the dark shadow that had appeared out of place from the backseat of the SUV took on the very defined image of the undercarriage of a vehicle. Broken red taillights reflected back at her when her flashlight lit up the government plate on the rear bumper.

Yelling their names, she hopped over the washed out embankment with Morgan and Rossi on her heels, sliding to and splashing in deep mud created by the water runoff. In seconds they were sliding in next to the mangled vehicle and Morgan dropped to he knees and peered through the broken driver's window while JJ and Rossi ran around the opposite side of the wreck.

"Hotch!" Morgan called out when he didn't see his boss in the window.

"Morgan they're not in here." JJ observed from the rear passenger door.

"I've got blood." Rossi hollered, eying the red liquid that had refused to dry in the wet conditions on the passenger's side door.

"So do I." Morgan added noting the crimson stain on the steering wheel.

"Where are they?" JJ asked, eyes searching the nearby woods.

"It's too washed out for footprints." Rossi observed. "There was another road up there, maybe a driveway. They probably followed that road to find help."

"It's a start." Morgan agreed.

Climbing up out of the ravine proved to be a much more difficult take then rushing down it had been. The water runoff from the road had created slick mud and small waterfalls off protruding rocks. Multiple times they had to use their hand to grip ground, bear walking and using small shrubs and plants to pull themselves up. Morgan was the first to make it back up to the road and reached out his hand to help JJ over the embankment, all of them winded.

"Rossi?"

Rossi turned at the worried tone in Morgan's voice. The agent crouched down and pointed at the mud at his feet. They hadn't noticed in their mad dash down the embankment. The whole section of road was littered with small glass fragments and half buried pieces of metal and fiberglass.

"They didn't just run off the road Rossi. They were hit."

Rossi's heart sank.

"You think they were abducted? It would have to be one hell of a tough guy to get them all up that embankment."

"Unless they were too injured to fight him."

"Even still, he would have had to carry them up one by one. Hell, we had a hard enough time getting ourselves back up outa there."

Morgan thought for a moment before jogging back to their SUV and pulling the map from the dash. Ignoring the rain dripping from his sleeves to the paper he traced the line of the road with his finger.

"Here." He pointed to spot on the map. "The road loops around. If he drove a vehicle to this spot on the road, he would only have to carry them downhill to his truck."

"That's assuming he somehow knew he would have time to drive back down the mountain to that spot and hike back up here to get them and carry them back down."

"So he secures them somehow until he can get back."

"That's a lot of what ifs." Rossi shook his head.

"But right now it's what we've got. Can't hurt to check it out."

"JJ, get on the phone and get the Rangers out here. Let them know what's going on." Rossi ordered as they jogged back to the SUV.

JJ pulled her phone from her pocket and her heart sunk.

"I don't have any signal."

Hotch paced in long strides, checking his watch for what seemed like the hundredth time. It had been over an hour since they had rid themselves of their shackles but their captors had yet to make an appearance. Prentiss had given up shortly after finding nothing useful as a weapon in the dark room and now sat in the corner with her knees drawn up to her chest and shivering in a fitful sleep. From the cold or from the pain she was trying to hide Hotch wasn't sure, but he didn't like it regardless. Reid had busied himself with a plan on how to use the chains to secure the Unsub as quickly as possible, calculating the weight and distance that they could reach. Now the genius sitting next to Emily, hoping that his close proximity would offer her a smidge of warmth, but not close enough to make her feel like he was hovering.

The clicking of the door lock had Hotch bolting to his position against the wall and picking up the chain from the floor so it would appear that he was still secure. Reid picked up his chain as well and stood, waking Prentiss in the process. The door creaked open and Hotch scowled at the intruder calmly despite his heart pounding away in his chest.

"It's raining cats and dogs out there." Goliath said while shaking off his jacket, splashing water at the agents.

"How long do you intend to keep us here?" Hotch asked, his anxiety rising as the Unsub stepped closer.

"Well that all depends." He said, taking another step closer. "I would have expected more from the FBI. Yet here you are, eight hours you've been here and only one of you has even managed to get her cuffs off and that was only because my partner was chompin at the bit to get this thing started."

"We won't play your game." Hotch challenged, back tense.

"Oh, you'll play Agent Hotchner." Two more steps.

Prentiss watched the scene in front of her as Hotch taunted the giant. As quickly as she'd be jerked awake from her sleep by Reid jumping up, she tucked her feet underneath her, preparing for a quick fight and flight. One more step and Hotch would be able to strike. She could see his jaw clenching with anticipation as the Unsub was becoming irritated at Hotch's refusal and Reid had gone to his toes, hands shaking.

"You play, or your friends pay."

The Unsub turned suddenly on Reid, fist flying out and catching him in the gut and he dropped to the floor. Hotch used the distraction, flinging himself at the Unsub's back, wrapping his arm around his thick neck and pulling as hard as he could. The man lost his balance, dropping to his knee and Hotch pulled up, struggling and praying that sleeper hold would take effect. Emily's attempt to stand was abruptly hindered when Reid had stumbled back into her, griping his stomach and gasping for air. In the extra seconds it had taken her to get her feet under her and stand, the Unsub threw his elbow upward violently catching Hotch in the ribs and turned on him.

Without a second thought, she bent down, ignoring the screaming pain in her side, and snatched up the chain that Hotch had dropped. Flinging herself at the Unsub's back, whipping the chain around his neck and pulling with as much leverage as she could get against his towering frame. The Unsub ignored the woman behind him and despite the chain she was pulling cutting off at his windpipe, he continued his attack and his monstrous fists pounding away at the unit chief. Hotch did his best to block the hits and kicked out, catching the man in the groin and he dropped to his knees.

In a blind panic, Emily used the change in the attacker's position to cinch up her hold on the chain, put her knee into his back and pulled with all of her might. Her rapid heartbeat pulsed behind her eyes and her vision began to blur while all the sounds in the rooms seemed to fade deep into the background but still she pulled.

Hotch rolled away from his attacker once his foot had connected at the man had dropped to his knees. He hunched over on his knees, leaning over onto his elbows for a moment, gasping for the breath the solid punches had forced from his lungs. He heard Reid call out his name and turned his head to see the bulky Unsub lying flat on his stomach with Emily jabbing her knee into his back and wrenching the chain so hard that her hands were white and blood was beginning to pool under the Unsubs neck as he gurgled in air. Reid was behind her, calling her name and trying to pull her back but was having little effect. Her eyes were dark and her face flushed bright red and he immediately knew that she was completely unaware of what she was doing.

Hotch shot up to his feet and wrapping his arms around her he pulled her up, ripping the chain from her hand in the process. Reid rushed to check on the Unsub while Hotch turned to push Emily back into the wall and grabbed her face between his hands forcing her to look at him.

"Prentiss, look at me." He ordered, searching her eyes for any spark of recognition. "Emily?"

She blinked and he felt a shudder go from her shoulders down to her toes and he could see the light coming back into her eyes. He called her name again and her blank stare slowly focused in on his face before her face blanched and her eyes rolled back. He caught her around her waist and her knees buckled and heaved her up onto his shoulder in a fireman's carry.

"He's still alive Hotch." Reid stated before realizing that Hotch had hoisted Prentiss up onto his shoulder.

"No time Reid. We have to move, now before the other comes looking for him. Grab his jacket and get the door." Hotch ordered and Reid stripped the jacket off the now unconscious Unsub and ran over to the door.

He opened it slowly and led them down a short hallway before reaching another door. Cautiously he pulled it open and they were blasted by the frigid pricks of frozen rain and the wind howled down the hallway into their former prison. Reid stuck his head out, blinking against the rain and looked both ways for any sign of danger before stepping out onto the soft muddy earth with a slosh. He took a few moments, looking up at the sky then the surrounding mountains, getting his bearings from his memory of the maps he had studied before pointing them in the direction of the Ranger's station.

Hotch adjusted Emily's weight on his shoulder and nodded to Reid to lead the way. A little worse for wear and now sopping wet they hurried out into the forest and Hotch silently prayed that they would reach their destination before their remaining Unsub discovered what they had done and where they were going. With Prentiss out of commission and their extreme lack in wilderness attire, the Unsub would undoubtedly move much faster than they could, but he prayed regardless.

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><p><em>Author's Note: Well there you have it, Chapter 5! I hope this one was a little faster and the story will probably continue to be pretty fast paced from here on out. I hoped you enjoyed reading and as always I really enjoy hearing what you have to say about it! Please review!<em>


	6. Chapter 6

_Author's Note: Thank you all for your reviews. I am having a blast writing this story. I apologize for the confusing POV changes in the last chapter as the editor took my page break out for some reason. And with that being said...Read on!_

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><p>"Check, check." Rossi spoke into his radio, his voice chipping through the other two radios with a slight time delay.<p>

Morgan nodded and clipped the radio to his belt, and plugged in his earpiece. After discovering that none of them had cell phone signal, they quickly decided two of them would stay in the forest to search the area, while the other drove far enough back down the mountain to get the call out to local PD and the forest Rangers. JJ immediately withdrew her name from the discussion claiming she was uncomfortable driving on the washed out road in the rain. Rossi volunteered to go, knowing that Morgan would be in such a hurry to get back to the search for his friends that he risked running their own vehicle of the road in his haste.

They strapped on their Kevlar vests and pulled their jackets back on over them and then their FBI windbreakers over the top for added protection against the storm. They were unsure how long it would take Rossi to drive down the mountain, make the phone calls and get back up to the point on the map that they had designated the loading spot the Unsub may have used, but they were sure it would take awhile. So they suited up as best as they could for the elements and hopped out of the SUV.

They watched the taillights disappear as Rossi drove away before carefully climbing back down the embankment to the crash site. Flashlights waving they began a more thorough look at the mangled body of the government SUV. Morgan peered through the broken back window into the cargo area before kicking away at the remains of the glass and pulling a duffle from its hold.

"There's a bag missing."

JJ joined him and shined her flashlight down into the cargo hold to see for herself. Morgan unzipped the duffle and dug through the vests and windbreakers and scowled. Without a word he kneeled down to peer into the inside of the upside down SUV. Scouring the entire compartment with his flashlight he shook his head and stood.

"The Unsub took the other bag."

Morgan ran his hands up over his head, wiping the rain from his face in frustration. Their Unit Chief was a stickler about the team's equipment and required that his agents carry their tactical gear in the vehicles with them at all times. This insured that they would be supplied and ready for anything at a moment's notice and would not have to rely on local law enforcement for gear that may or may not be in proper working order.

"The Unsub's got the MP5s and the flashbangs."

JJ's scowled and dropped her attention down to the discarded bag of gear at Morgan's feet. A sudden thought dropped her to her knees in the mud and she ripped through the bag, pulling out the vests and windbreakers and tossing them aside until the bag was empty.

"What are you doing?" Morgan asked, shining his flashlight down at her.

"Their radios. Hotch must have kept their radios in the bag with the guns. Garcia can trace the radios!"

Before she had finished speaking, Morgan had keyed up his mic, calling Rossi.

"Go ahead Morgan." Rossi's voice cracked into their earbuds.

"Rossi, the Unsub has their radios. Call Garcia and get her on tracking them."

"Got it."

Morgan turned back to JJ and with silent agreement they abandoned the SUV to begin their trek down the mountain.

Reid felt like he had been running for hours when Hotch finally called his name and had told him they needed to stop for a rest. They found a large bush that had grown up tightly pressed against a large boulder and decided that it would make their best cover to stop. Hotch knelt down in the mud and with Reid's help slid Emily's limp body from his should to lean her back against the rock. He used his shirt sleeve to wipe the water from her face and cleared away some of the old blood in the process and was unnerved by her unresponsiveness to his touch.

"Is she alright?" Reid asked quietly, moving to sit next to her.

"She's got a pretty bad head injury. I think she just overexerted herself."

"That was scary Hotch." Reid confessed. "She may have killed that guy. She's going to have a hard time dealing with that."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Right now I just want to make sure she didn't hurt herself any more in the process. Are you okay?"

Hotch's dark eyes bore into him and he sheepishly rubbed his stomach where he'd been struck.

"He knocked the wind outa me pretty good, but I'm alright. You?"

Hotch thought for a moment then flexed the sore muscles of his back and shoulders. The gash in his arm stung and now bled freely, having been torn open by the pummeling fists of the giant. His head had taken on a permanent pounding, and he was pretty sure he had some pretty good bruises forming on his face.

"I'm fine." He assured and turned his attention back to Emily.

He eyed her slack features for a moment and when he was confident she wouldn't wake up on him he cautiously reached down and undid the bottom two buttons on her shirt and parted it as little as possible to take a look at her side that she had been favoring all day. He drew in a breath as his eyes met the spattering of damaged capillaries and dark bruising that ran high up her side and darkened as it wrapped around toward her back.

"That looks bad." Reid stated, peeking over at the revealed injury.

Hotch suppressed a remark about Reid stating the obvious and quickly buttoned her shirt and sat back on his heels. As obvious as the statement was, Reid was correct. Emily did not look good and he wasn't sure if it was her broken ribs and possible internal bleeding, or her head injury that worried him more. He was also right about the inevitable fallout that would ensue when she came back to her senses and realized the she may have killed a man with her bare hands. Her very hands that were now raw and bleeding from the stress she had put them through, wrapped tightly in the rough chains that had held them captive a few hours prior. She would definitely have a hard time dealing with her actions and he mentally repeated what he had said to Reid. They would cross that bridge when the time came.

A particularly strong wind cut through their organic shelter and stung their faces with a howl. The rain was beginning to die down but they were already soaked to the bones and the dropping temperature was starting to take its toll. Reid was shivering; pulling his sweater tightly around him as if it's dripping material would help contain his body heat. Hotch could no longer feel his fingers or toes and watched Emily's body tense up in a shiver as she slowly came to.

"Prentiss." He said quietly.

She flinched at the close proximity of his voice and she shot forward, sitting up away from the rock with a wince and her hand went instinctively around her ribs. He caught her by the shoulders and carefully pushed her back to lean against the rock.

"It ok Em. We're outside."

For a moment she wanted to ask him what exactly they had been inside before the memories of the last few hours flooding her sluggish mind. Their Unsub had attacked Reid and Hotch and she had acted on pure instinct. She remembered grabbing the chain from the ground and running at behemoth while he hit Hotch, and then nothing. Her memory was a blank.

"What the hell happened?" she asked through chattering teeth.

"You don't remember?"

"I remember the Unsub attacking you, but everything is a blank after that. I passed out didn't I? Hotch I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry Prentiss. You have a concussion and in any normal circumstances you'd be spending the night in the hospital and not freezing out in the middle of nowhere. Unfortunately we don't have that luxury right now, and we need to get moving. Are you going to be okay to walk?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." She answered without hesitation and he couldn't help but roll his eyes as he helped to her feet.

She swayed for a moment, dizziness hitting her like a brick and Hotch steadied her, eyes searching her face for her to change her opinion of being fine. Once the dizziness subsided she shrugged him away and waved a shaky hand to Reid.

"Lead on McDuff."

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><p><em>Author's Note: I know it was another short Chapter but I really wanted to get it posted before I go into to work tonight. I will be working on the next Chapter at work and have the following day off, so I promise I will give you a longer action packed Chapter! As always, click that little button and let me know what you think!<em>


	7. Chapter 7

_Author's Note: I know I promised you some updates yesterday but I was otherwise distracted by the surprise return of my sister who returned from Iraq! Hooah! It turned into an all day family deal so I must confess, I forgot about all of you. Now I feel bad so here is a new Chapter all shiny and new, and the longest one yet. Enjoy!_

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><p>Rossi drove as quickly as his safety would allow, risking quick glances at the cell phone in his hand. Suddenly the device beeped and he slowed the SUV to a stop and eyed the solitary bar on its screen. He wasn't sure the signal would hold, but it was worth a try. He instantly dialed Garcia, who would in turn he would have her call local PD resources from him. She answered on the first ring.<p>

"I've been trying to reach you guys for hours!" she scolded without a hello. "Not a single one of you is answering. You freaked me out!"

"Garcia, we have a problem out here and are out of cell phone range."

"What problem? What happened?"

Rossi paused for a moment, thinking of the best way to tell her that three of her best friends were missing and most likely in the hands of a deranged killer.

"Rossi!" she urged on when he didn't answer her.

"Hotch, Prentiss and Reid are missing."

"What do you mean missing? How can they be missing?"

"There was an accident. We found their vehicle in a ravine but they weren't there. Garcia, we need you to contact local PD and the Forest service and get them the GPS signal from their SUV. Have them searching the area ASAP."

"Why on earth would the wander off into the woods after an accident instead of staying by the road? What aren't you telling me Rossi?"

After he paused again she pleaded uncharacteristically into the phone.

"Rossi, please just tell me."

"We don't think it was an accident. We found evidence of a collision on the road but no other vehicle. We think someone ran them off the road and may have taken them somewhere."

"Oh my god!"

"Garcia, whoever took them also has their cell phones and radios. See if you can track any of them down."

"Already on it."

Garcia's fingers flew at lightning speed across the sparkling keyboard in a well practiced tap dance.

"Nothing. They're all turned off. I can't find them." She choked in frustration.

"Keep tabs on them just in case."

Garcia agreed and drug the tracing program to the large computer monitor mounted on the wall to her left.

"Oh and Garcia, what were you trying to reach us about?"

"Oh! I got the information back on the employees of the K2 supply shop. I think I found our guy. He name is Benjamin Lambert. It took me awhile to find him because he actually isn't an employee of the shop. He's an outside contractor who teaches weekly outdoor survival classes. I confirmed it with the scheduler that all of our victims had attended his class."

"Call the shop and see if they've heard from him today."

"I already did. He had a class scheduled for this afternoon but never showed."

"Send me everything you have on him."

His phone beeped in his ear almost immediately after the order had left his lips, signaling the receipt of the file.

"Got it. I have to get back up the mountain to help Morgan and JJ. If you have to contact us, just send it through the PD and have them radio it up to us. I know it's slow, but it's all we've got out here.

"Ok. Now get out there and find our people!" she exclaimed and hung up before he could even answer.

He dropped his phone from his ear and scrolled through the new file. He quickly scanned over Lambert's background information and was both impressed and terrified at the amount of outdoor survival and hunting experience he had on record. He took a moment to study the photograph of the scruffy thirty-something man. His bulky shoulders and thick neck told Rossi that he was most likely a large man and definitely had the right physical condition to be capable of man handling his friends down a mountain.

He set the phone down and smoothly turned the SUV around to head back up the road to rejoin the search for his friends.

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><p>Benjamin Lambert was not just pissed off when he crashed through the door of their small hunting cabin, he was downright furious. His partner and long time hunting partner jumped from the sound and turned from sharpening his knife to look at him.<p>

Ben was drenched from head to toe and his t-shirt was stained pink from the small amount of blood that had leaked from the small gashes that his hand now covered at the side of his neck.

"Well the hell happened to you?" he asked, hopping up from his feet and tossing him the dishtowel he had used earlier to clean his rifle.

"They escaped." Ben growled, storming down the short hallway and grabbing a hand mirror from the bathroom to survey the damage to his neck.

"What? All of them?"

"Yes Paul, all of them!" he roared, throwing the mirror across the room where it shattered into slivers against the solid pine wall.

"How the hell did they get out?"

"Hell if I know."

Paul was following his fuming partner as he stormed around their small abode, striping off his wet clothing and pulling on new dry ones and pulling on a pair of dry boots.

"What about the hunt Ben?" he asked, wringing his hands together like child worried that he has lost his favorite toy.

"Don't worry. We'll get to the hunt Brother. We just have to recatch the bait. And when we do, that bitch is mine!"

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><p>JJ swore as her foot sunk into a patch of deep mud, covering her entire shoe and soaking down into her sock. The rain had receded to a steady drizzle, which she was thankful for and only a few hundred yards from the wrecked SUV, Morgan had spotted a deep imprint of a shoe that was much too large to have belonged to any of their fellow agents. Now that they knew they were on the right track, they were hurrying. Their flashlights bounced off the trees, rocks, and occasionally would illuminate a shrub that had been flattened by the weight of a footstep.<p>

They had been following the trail for nearly two hours before they broke through the thick foliage and onto a double rutted hunter's path. The torn up earth and chucks of mud coating nearby bushes and grass was all the evidence they needed to know that the path had been used recently.

"Rossi," Morgan spoke into his mic. "We got a dirt road and footprints up here about a mile from the SUV. We're going to follow it east."

"Copy that Morgan. Keep your heads up, we've got an ID on our Unsub and he's got quite the background in survival and hunting. I'm going to head back down to the police station to run communications to Garcia. You two be careful."

"Copy that."

JJ listened to the exchange through her earpiece and when Morgan turned back to face her she offered him a meek smile, telling him she was ready and had his back no matter what they faced. They would find and rescue their friends.

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><p>Spencer Reid was miserable. He was drenched from his wet hair dripping down into his eyes, right down to his soaked shoes and sopping socks that had sucked all the warmth from his feet, making them numb. He'd long since given up on attempting to use his sweater to stay warm as it was soaked clean through and only succeeded in holding more water in its soft material. He predicted they had walked at least a few miles, trying to stay close to the cover of trees and tall shrubs, just in case their second Unsub was lurking. He turned back to check on his friends, who looked just as miserable as he felt.<p>

Prentiss had fallen into step a few yards behind him with Hotch trudging along just behind her, where he could watch for any changes in her condition without her feeling like he was hovering. Once they had gotten to a relatively safe distance away from the bunker, they had quickly gone through the jacket that Reid had taken off the unconscious Unsub and found nothing but the bunker keys jingling in one of the pockets. As short time later they had insisted that Prentiss wear the jacket when her shivering had become so intense that they could hear her teeth chattering together over the sound of the rain and wind.

Reid watched Prentiss for a few moments, noting that she was no longer shaking so visibly with the weight of the flannel lined jacket, but at some point during their walk had taken on a slight hunch, slumping forward and into her side where she hugged her ribs protectively. His eyes flashed up to Hotch, whose eyes told him that he hadn't missed the change in her stance, but that he had decided not to say anything to her about it. Reid knew there was nothing he could do to help her, other than lead them on toward the Ranger's station, and hopefully to rescue, so he walked on.

Emily knew they were watching her. She could feel Hotch's hawk like stare boring into her back but she ignored it and focused on placing one foot in front of the other. She couldn't feel her feet and frequently stumbled over the uneven terrain when her numb foot failed to balance on the scattered rocks and plants, but still she walked on. The initial thought of having to wear the coat of the man who had nearly killed them with a truck and held them captive made her skin crawl. But when her body began shaking so violently from the plummeting temperatures, Hotch had simply placed it around her shoulders without a word and she couldn't bring herself to argue.

Her foot struck a particularly solid rock and her hand jolted out in front of her, trying to stop her decent to the ground. They made contact with Reid's back and he reflexively reached out and caught her arm just as she landed on her knees with a muddy splash. She bit her lip and coughed against the sharp pain in her side and closed her eyes, willing it to go away. Reid knelt at her side, holding her upright and giving her a minute. Once it subsided, she let Reid help her back to her feet and to his surprise, she held on to his arm for awhile longer until her balance returned.

"Are you alright?" he asked, concern burning in his eyes.

"Peachy." She groaned and took an experimental step before releasing his arm.

"We should be coming up on the road that will lead to the station soon." He said loudly for Hotch, pulling his Eagle's stare from Emily's back.

"What's the plan when we get there?" Prentiss asked, lightly coughing at a tickle in her chest and hoping the conversation would distract her from the pain radiating from her head.

"Dry off and warm up." Reid answered. "And hopefully there's a working radio we can use to contact the rest of the team."

"And if there's not?"

Any attempt to answer her question was instantly stomped out by the wracking cough that rattled out of her chest. Hotch stepped in close, crowding her and peering down at her, afraid of what he might see. If Prentiss was coughing up blood, she most definitely had some internal bleeding and they were in very serious trouble.

"I'm fine." She spoke steadily, taking in the terrified looks on her friend's faces. "It's cold out here and I coughed. I'm okay."

Hotch eyed her hand that she had used to cover her cough and other then the injuries it had sustained in her attack on the Unsub, it appeared bloodless.

"Hotch?" she said firmly, forcing his attention back to her face. "I'm fine. Really. We need to keep moving."

Reluctantly he nodded and Reid began walking again. This time Hotch followed at an arms length behind her. His gut told him that things were going to get worse before they got better, and he was going to be damn sure he was right there if it did.

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><p><em>Author's Note: There it is, what do you think? I'm a little iffy with POV changes. Is it confusing to you? Click it and let me know! <em>


	8. Chapter 8

_Author's Note: Thank you all for your wishes and kind word to my sister. We are very happy to have her home! Also to clarify some questions that have come up; the first being pairings. I'm the kind of writer that likes to stay true to the show, so unless otherwise specified, and I mean really specified, you will not find any romantic pairings in any of my stories. I simply write them as the good friends that they are, and act in the way I believe a good friend would act. I also received some questions about whether I a going to continue my other story "A Matter of Time". The answer is yes, just not until I have finished this one. Okay now that we've covered all that jazz, Read on!_

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><p>Morgan and JJ had been following the almost invisible road for nearly an hour when Morgan made out the shadowing frame of a structure ahead. He waved his hand, motioning to JJ and pulled his gun from it's holster. JJ followed his lead, clicking off her flashlight and clearing her weapon from her own holster and falling into step behind him. Slowly they weaved between trees, eyes adjusting to the total darkness of night as they came up to the windowless bunker. With their backs pressed against it and guns down in front of them, Morgan gave JJ a quick hand signal and instructed her to make her way around the right while he went left. She nodded her understanding and in a well practiced maneuver they were moving.<p>

Morgan rounded the small building, eyes scanning the trees around him while he pressed his back up against the cold concrete. JJ's voice whispered through his earpiece announcing that she had found a door and he quickly crept around the wall to join her. He lifted his gun to the door and nodded to her. She reached down and slowly twisted the knob, pushing the door open with an eerie creak that echoed deep into the structure.

They were met with a pitch black hallway and Morgan was forced to switch on the light attachment on his gun in order to see where he was going. Unfortunately this also lit him up like a perfect target to anyone who could be squatting in wait in the shadows. Slowly and silently they slid against the walls down the short hallway when JJ stopped, catching sight of something dark against the wall.

"Morgan" she whispered and when he turned to look at her his light hit the spot she had been looking at.

The dark patch took on the bright color of crimson and an undeniable shape of a handprint. The sight of the blood in the solid darkness made his skin crawl and raised the hair on his neck. As they approached the print it became obvious that it was much too large to belong to their friends but raised the other question of whom it belonged to. Pushing the handprint to the back of their minds for the time being, they continued the short trip down the hall until they reached a heavy wooden door that swung slightly ajar, revealing a dim light from it's insides. They quickly took position on either side of the door and with a quick nod JJ pushed it open and Morgan flew in with gun blazing and ready.

They instantly dropped their weapons when they realized the room was completely empty. JJ tried not to notice the small puddle of blood near the wall and instead focused on the chains and shackles that hung loosely from the wall, which didn't make her feel any better.

"What the hell is this place?" she whispered to Morgan as he crouched down near the blood, noticing a dark cloth nearby.

JJ's heart attempted to leap from her throat when he lifted the long dark piece of material to hang loosely in front of his face and turned to look at her. The last time they had seen the navy blue material it had been tied securely against the perfectly pressed collar of their Unit Chief earlier in the morning.

"They were here." he said quietly. "At least Hotch was."

"You don't think that's his blood do you?"

"I don't know. The handprint out there is definitely too big and at an angle as if he was stumbling and caught himself against the wall."

"Rossi said the Unsub was big. Do you think the blood might be his? Maybe they escaped."

"If they did, he's right behind them."

Morgan sighed and stood before leading them back down the hallway and out of the bunker. Once out of the dark and feeling confident that they were alone, they switched on their flashlights and scanned the area. They immediately found the deep impressions all around the entrance to the bunker and were sure they had identified the prints of all three of their friends. Relieved at the realization that their friends were at least together, Morgan keyed up his radio.

"Rossi?"

"Go ahead Morgan," Rossi's voice crackled in their ears.

"Cancel PD at the crash site. We found a bunker where he was holding them. We've got multiple sets of footprints leading in and out of a concrete bunker and I'm pretty sure they escaped."

"Give me two minutes to mark your GPS with Garcia and I'll send in the search team with some dogs."

"Copy that. Make sure you also send a tactical team. There's a trail leading off in another direction that I think belongs to Lambert. We're going after Hotch and the others."

"You got it. Be careful."

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><p>The opaque walls of the structure jutted out of the trees ahead of them as they rounded a particularly large swatch of trees and Reid's eyebrows shot to his forehead in excitement.<p>

"We made it!"

Hotch peeked cautiously around the tree line and motioned for the others to stay quiet. He held up a finger at them to stay put and slowly crept up toward the small building, pressing his back against the wall and peeking through a dark window.

The living room looked as if it had been abandoned for years. Thick layers of dust covered a small coffee table sitting in front of an old couch and he had to crouch low to be able see past a large netting of cobwebs that clung loosely to the window frame above him. Satisfied that their hunters weren't going to come jumping out of the confines of the shanty, he waved at Reid, who for a moment, thought he was going to have to give Prentiss a push to get her moving again. Together they stepped up onto the rickety wooden porch and Hotch pushed open the door and stepped lightly into it's clutches.

Upon their entry it became quite obvious that the small cabin had not been used for official Ranger business in quite some time. Thick planks of wood that they assumed had once been a bookshelf had collapsed into a dusty pile in a corner and squiggly graffiti decorated the walls with bright colors claiming by name that Brian, Jerry, Rebecca and Carlos had been there. The dilapidated sofa in front of the dirt filled fireplace was the only piece of intact furniture in the room, no doubt becoming the center of activity for the young vandals who most likely had discovered the shack and used it for many secret marijuana parties.

Hotch didn't waste any time on the condition of the living space before taking long strides across the room and pushing open a door and peering inside at the dusty, broken down remains of an office. His heart fell at the sight of the CB radio base station on the floor in the corner covered with years of dirt and grime. He bent over and picked it up, wrapping the cord around it and carrying it out to the other room.

In the living room, Reid pulled his sopping sweater from his shoulders revealing his shirt that clung to his wiry frame giving him the appearance of a lanky teenager and was wringing out the sweater when Hotch hurried into the room. Ignoring the light cough coming from Prentiss as she lowered herself to sit on the dirty sofa, he briskly strode to the adjoining kitchen and plopped the radio on the counter with a thud. He used his hand to brush some of the dirt from the counter near the wall outlet and plugged it in. He didn't think there would still be electricity in the run down cabin but he was still disappointed when the radio failed to turn on. In a lapse of frustration Hotch threw the hand mic, which flew to the end of it's cord and sprung back against the wall with a loud clatter causing Reid to jump in surprise at his small outburst. Hotch brought his elbows to the counter and leaned over to rest his forehead in his hands, closing his eyes against the headache raging in his skull.

"Hotch?" Reid said quietly from his side.

He looked up at the young doctor and his eyes pleaded with him to hold it together and he immediately felt guilty.

"I'm sorry." he spoke and pushed himself away from the counter.

Another short fit of quiet coughs brought their attention back to the couch where Prentiss had planted herself without a word and was quickly starting to look more and more miserable. Hotch moved to kneel in front of her so he could get a straight look at her face. Her eyes were closed and he noted the skin around the deep gash in her forehead had begun bruising into a deep purple against her pale face and her lips had taken on a slightly blue tint. Now that she didn't have the distraction of forcing herself to move through the forest, her body was quickly deciding it was going to shut down whether she wanted it to or not.

"Prentiss?" he spoke quietly.

"Hmm?" she acknowledged.

"Why don't you lie down and rest for a bit. We aren't going anywhere for awhile and you don't look so good."

Emily opened her eyes and was slightly taken aback by how close he was, crouching down in front of her knees. She had meant to protest and offer to help search the cabin when his face began to swirl around and quiver into a blurry splotch and she blinked hard, resetting the image to clarity before it rotated and blurred again. She tried to keep her eyes open, but the sudden vertigo made her stomach turn so she blinked again, restarting the whole motion.

Hotch watched her curiously, concern growing when she seemed to stare right through him, blink, focus, and zone out again. He motioned for Reid to take his place at her knees as he stood.

"Keep an eye on her. I'm gonna see if I can find anything useful around here." he instructed and wandered down the small hall and disappeared into a bedroom.

Hotch pushed the door to the small bedroom open with a loud creak and was met by a stagnant living quarters. A twin bed was set in the center of the small space, dirty and rumpled from disuse. He quickly pulled the blankets from it's dinky mattress and shook it out in front of him. Thick dust erupted from it's depths like the ash of Mt. Saint Helens and he squeezed his eyes shut, turned his head and shook it again. He didn't want to think about how dirty the quilt was or who may have touched it last as he carried it down the hall and tossed it to Reid and went back to his search of the house.

Reid caught the blanket and coughed at the slight poof of dust that jumped up at his nose before wrapping it around Emily's shoulders and pulling it tightly around her. Her eyes were closed now but her straight back and tense features told him she was awake but fighting her urge to give up and rest.

"Emily?" he called out quietly. "You need to rest for awhile."

Prentiss could hear her friend's soft voice in front of her but refused to open her eyes, too afraid the swirling would make her just nauseous enough to lose her breakfast. Her ribs screamed at the mere thought of the strain that vomiting would have on them so she kept her eyes shut.

A heavy warmth pressed lightly around her shoulders and the smell of dust filled her nostrils. She felt Reid's hands running quickly up on down her shoulders in an attempt to stop the violent shivering that had suddenly taken a hold of her entire body and she knew from first aid class to be a sign of shock. Every fiber of her wanted to stand up and help her friends find a way out if these god forsaken woods, but the warmth beginning to settle into her bones and the voice of her friend asking her to give in finally began to win out. She slowly slumped forward, wincing as it stressed her ribs, and let her forehead rest against Reid's shoulder.

Reid was somewhat surprised by the contact but quickly recovered and half stood to turn and sit on the couch next to her. Her limp head barely lost contact during the movement, sliding under his chin and resting against his other shoulder and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her into a protective hug. Almost immediately she went completely limp as she finally gave in to her body's need to sleep and he let his own shivering body soak up warmth of the blanket around her.

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><p><em>Author's Note: There you have it. A little action, a little drama, and some brotherly Reid love. Hope you enjoyed it. If you all are good I may give you another Chapter tomorrow! Got something to share or even simply want to say hi? Click it! I'd love to hear your thoughts!<em>


	9. Chapter 9

_Author's Note: Doh! You all were good and I still didn't get to update yesterday. Sorry! I was hit with a bad case of the "I don't wannas" and just couldn't focus on writing it yesterday. Special thanks** kp4377** for your help and keeping me company while I worked on the last few chapters! Fortunately I woke up today with a severe case of the "I'm gonnas" and I did. So here it is! Enjoy!_

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><p>Ben Lambert crouched down onto his steel toed boots, peering down at the deep imprints near the entrance of the concrete bunker. After he had made his way back to their hunting cabin and changing his clothes, he and Paul had made their way back to the bunker to pick up the tracks of their escaped prisoners. He slung his hunting rifle over his shoulder and poked a finger into the footprint and then moved his attention to a different print.<p>

"This isn't right." He said to his partner.

Paul slung his own rifle over his shoulder and crouched down next to him to study the smattering of deep tracks.

"This one doesn't fit." He pointed to a small dip in the soft mud. "There are two woman's footprints here. This set comes in from the road."

"They're here already?" Paul asked excitedly. "Now we can hunt right Ben?"

"Shut up and let me think for a minute."

He ran his hand over his scruffy chin and studied the prints, pointing to one, calculating, then pointing to another and doing the same until he had counted five separate sets. Two smaller sets he assumed belonged to the two female agents, and three separate sets, similar in size but different depths from different weights of the male agents. One member of the six man team was missing and it bothered him that he didn't know which one was absent. They had begun this charade with only one specific target in mind. Paul's _white whale _as he had called the agent. His most desired trophy. At first Ben hadn't been so keen on the whole idea, but once the challenge of hunt had been introduced, he couldn't stop thinking about it. The ultimate challenge, to hunt an entire herd of highly trained prey; it was too enticing to pass up. And in doing so, Paul would get to feed his obsession and they would both be happy.

He quickly shook off his disappointment in the absence of one of the agents, and focused on the task at hand.

"Well, they're following the bait like we had wanted. It just isn't the way we original planned. This is okay though, we can still do this."

"What's the plan?"

"We catch up to them. I don't know where they think they're going, but I know exactly where we're gonna herd them."

Ben smiled down at his counterpart and Paul returned the smirk and his eyes twinkled with the insanity that Ben had become very family with. As the rain was beginning to fall steadily again, they slung their rifles, and Ben handed a Paul one of the radios they had taken from the agents and tread silently into the woods. Now it was simply a race to see who would get to the kill first.

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><p>Reid listened to the rattling of the aluminum roofing of their rickety cabin as the brewing storm beyond it grew in intensity. After sitting with Prentiss for nearly an hour until the feeling in his hands and feet had returned, he carefully pulled his arm free of her shoulders and supported her limp body until she was lying out flat across the sofa. It had been some time since Hotch disappeared into the back two rooms at the end of the hallway and if it hadn't been for the occasional crash and shuffle of him moving things around, he would thought he had left the cabin altogether.<p>

Just as Reid was about to hurry down the hallway to check up with Hotch, the unit chief came hustling down the hallway with a scowl of determination on his face.

"There's a shed outside." He spoke without slowing down as he passed him.

Without words Reid fell into step behind him, hurrying to keep up with his long strides as he broke through the front door and they were blasted by frigid wall of frigid wind and frozen rain. Stunned by the sudden intensity of it, Reid stood on the lopsided porch for a moment and dazed off into the woods. The large trees waved violent in the throes of the storm and the rain had already begun forming small streams that dug deep into the mud and scurried downhill in the paths of least resistance. At Hotch's bark from around the side of the cabin he snapped back to reality and hurried down the steps and around the corner to join him in front of a tiny free standing tool shed that had been places at the rear of the house and set against the side of a small hill.

Hotch pulled at the handle a few times, blinking past his rain plastered hair that dripped down into his eyes. After the third tug, his frustration boiled over and he took a long step back, and with the leverage of his left foot, kicked out his right. The weakened doorframe exploded into a torrent of splinters and dirt and Hotch had to catch himself from falling on his face at the lack of resistance it provided against the impact. They were surprised to discover that the inside of the shed appeared to be untouched by the vandals that had redecorated the interior of the cabin itself. Layers of dust and pine needles covered the floor and shelves that hung snuggly against the walls and Hotch immediately noticed the large cloth tarp draped over a large rectangular shaped object. Ignoring the rest of the possible tools in the shed, he went for the tarp, grabbing its end and ripping it forward, uncovering the best thing his eyes had seen in ages. The wheel mounted generator had obviously been sitting for quite some time, sporting its own layer of dust, but after checking the visual gas gauge and finding it not quite empty, he was confident that he could get it running.

"Is that a generator?"

He had forgotten that Reid was there for a moment and nodded, wiping off some of the dirt with his wet hands.

"Won't they be able to hear it?"

Hotch's heart sunk. In his excitement of finding the machine and the possibilities of getting the radio to work with a little bit of electricity he had forgotten about the noise the generator would create. The men that were hunting them, and possibly very close to their location, would no doubt be able to hear the rumbling engine as it sent power to the cabin, and more importantly, the radio. He did a quick search of the rest of the shed with his eyes, noting a couple of shovels and a rusty pick axe they may be able to use as weapons if they had to.

"We have to try. We'll turn it on just long enough to send out a transmission on the radio. Then we turn it off and hole up until help comes. Hopefully they aren't close enough to us to hear it yet."

Reid nodded in understanding and crouched down in front of the machine to watch as Hotch pushed the soft rubber button on side a few times, priming the mechanisms, and then pulling out on the choke switch. Holding his breath, Hotch stood up, grabbed the plastic handle and pulled his elbow up, jerking the cord and causing the engine to turn and sputter out. He adjusted the choke, pushed the primer again and pulled. Again it sputtered. On his fifth attempt the engine finally roared to life, deafening them in the small confines of the shed and filling the space with a thick cloud of engine exhaust.

"Yes!" Reid shouted and pumped his arm in victory before standing and running back front of the cabin while Hotch stayed out at the edge of the porch to watch for any approaching threats.

Once inside, Reid slid across the wet laminate tile leaving to trails of slick mud and stopped himself against the counter where the radio sat. He clicked on the button and twisted the knob, frowned, unplugged the device and ran to another outlet across the room and repeated his actions. He fought his own frustration and pulled the plug from the wall, blowing into the outlet in case it had been filled with too much dust and plugged it back in. Still nothing. In defeat he dropped the radio onto the floor and ran his hands through his wet hair and jogged back out on to the porch. He caught Hotch's attention and shook his head, his disappointment sinking deeper at the scowl that Hotch returned to him. He followed Hotch back to the shed where he immediately shut off the generator and they stood in silence thinking for a few minutes.

"Okay," Hotch finally spoke and grabbed a box of rusty nails from one of the shelves, "The storm is getting bad and for now, we're in the safest possible place we can hope for right now. Hopefully the rain will slow them down until it passes and that gives us time to prepare for them."

He handed the box to Reid and picked up a carpenters hammer that had long been discarded into the corner of the room near one of the shovels.

"Use the broken bookshelves and anything you can find and start boarding up the side windows. We need to fortify this place as much as possible. They're going to catch up to us eventually, and we'll be ready for them when they get here."

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><p>Morgan and JJ had been doing the best that they could to track the footprints of their friends when the wind had begun picking up and the rain started to destroy their trail. They hadn't heard much from Rossi since he had informed them that the search team had arrived at the bunker and had the dogs on the trail. Now, as the storm was pounding down on them and he was convinced the wind would knock JJ right off her feet, he was starting to think they would have to abandon their search for their friends and find some sort of shelter from the storm.<p>

A strange sound on the wind caught JJ's attention and she whipped her around to search the surrounding trees to her left. The faint sound held steady and she pulled the earpiece from her ear in order to listen harder. She squinted through the steady water dripping from the bill of her baseball cap and waved her flashlight over the thrashing trees in an attempt to find the source of the noise.

"What is it JJ?" Morgan asked, stepped up next to her.

"Do you hear that?"

Morgan listened, ears straining to separate the odd sound from the raging winds and rustling tree branches.

"Yeah, what is that?"

Drawing their weapons they carefully hiked over a small hill and through a thick cropping of mulberry bushes toward the sound. After a few hundred yards they were sure they were coming up on whatever was causing the sound and killed their flashlights.

"Derek, that sounds like a motor."

In an instant the noise was gone and their straining ears rang from the abrupt loss of their focus. Nodding at each other, they continued their creep in the direction they believed the noise had originated and after another hundred yards they could make out the dark outline of a cabin. Morgan dropped to his knees behind and bush and JJ followed his direction, backing up against a tree and waiting for his instruction. He held up his hand, peering around the bush at the house before motioning that she go right and he would go left. She nodded and they crept forward, sticking to the cover of the trees.

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><p>Inside the cabin Reid was banging away at a nail he was holding into a diagonally set plank from the broken bookshelf against the office window. A movement through the grimy pane caught his attention and he squinted out silently, waiting to see if his eyes were playing tricks on him. A moment later he saw it again, a dark shadow slinking slowly against the tree line and coming up on them. He hopped up to his feet and whispered as loudly as possible to Hotch, who was using a leg off the coffee table to bang another nail to a window in the side bedroom.<p>

"Hotch! There's someone outside and he's moving in!"

Hotch shot to his feet, scrambling to pick up the pick axe that he had set to lean against the couch near Prentiss's feet, and slid up to the front door to peer out of the peephole. Reid took a second to check on Prentiss, who was still sleeping soundly despite the ruckus, before picking up one of the shovels and ducking down behind the kitchen counter. Taking a deep breath, Hotch stepped back from the door and pressed his back against the wall next to it, desperately trying to control his thumping heart while they waited.

A loud creak and slight tremor in the floor beneath their feet announced the arrival of their guest as he stepped up the steps and onto the porch. Reid pressed himself tighter against the counter and gripped at the shovel handle as the footsteps crossed the porch and a shadow filled the small window above the sink as figure peered inside. He allowed himself a small breath when the figure moved on, his footsteps closing in on the door. The steps creaked again, proclaiming the second arrival of another person approaching.

Hotch watched the shadow in the window above Reid, silently praying that Reid was pressed close enough under the counter that he wouldn't see him and that Prentiss would not choose this moment to sit up from her concussion induced nap and completely give them away. The figure moved on and he could feel the floorboards under his feet vibrate under each step from the porch and he gripped the handle tighter, wringing its wooden surface between his palms to tightly that he would have splinters. He could feel the presence of the intruders standing just on the other side of the door and his heart pounded away in his throat when the doorknob slowly turned and the door cracked open.

The door slowly opened all the way and Hotch watched as the barrel of a pistol clasped between two gloved hands protruded past its barrier. He held his breath, waiting for him to fully enter the room before he attacked. As soon as the shoulders of the figure were in sight, he flew himself at the door, catching the man in the back and hearing the door connect with the second intruder. Reid shot up from his place behind the counter, readying the shovel for a full swing before recognizing their intruder.

"Hotch!" Reid yelled, dropping the shovel to the floor.

Luckily Hotch had immediately recognized their friend the second the door hand flung him off balance, knocking his gun from his hand, and the bright yellow letters FBI on the back of his windbreaker had blinded him. The door shot open again immediately, catching them all by surprise as JJ came flying through, gun raised and ready to take out whoever it had been who smacked her with the door.

"JJ stop." Morgan instructed, raising his hand as realization struck the blond. "It's Hotch."

"Oh thank god." She breathed out, returning her gun to its holster and grabbing Reid in a hug. "I was so worried about you guys? Are you guys alright? Where's Emily?"

"She's on the couch." Hotch answered solemnly.

The look on his face as he said it had JJ's heart right back up in her throat and she hurried around to the front of the sofa to look at her friend. Emily's eyebrows were furrowed in pain against her bruising forehead and her cheeks taken on a pink hue that was uncharacteristic for her normally pale complexion.

"What happened?" Morgan asked, watching as JJ tried to rouse the brunette from her sleep.

"She hit her head in the roll over. She's been fighting with it for the last twelve hours." Reid answered quickly. "I think she's got some broken ribs too and she's been coughing a lot. We had to make a run for it after we were able to take out one of the Unsubs. She was doing okay until and I finally got her to rest a little. She's been asleep for almost three hours now."

"One of the Unsubs? There's more than one?"

"Yeah, two actually, but there might only be one now. Prentiss sort of injured one of them." Reid informed sheepishly.

"How did you guys find us?" Hotch asked, interrupting.

"We were following your tracks and heard some sort of motor running. We followed it and here we are."

"We ran the generator for a few minutes. We were trying to get some electricity to the old Ranger radio."

Hotch's mention of the radio reminded Morgan of their own earpieces they had unplugged while following the sounds of the generator. Just as he stuck the earbud back into his ear a static voice crackled through it. His eyebrows furrowed as he listened to the voice and then turned to JJ. She took in his confused expression and replaced her own earpiece, listening.

"Who is that?" she asked, listening to the unfamiliar voice.

"Hotch, listen to this. Is this the Unsub?"

Hotch grabbed the earpiece and held it up to his ear for a moment, listening. The voice crackled over the static again and he instantly recognized it as the first man they had encountered in the bunker.

"That's one of them. How did he get on your radio frequency?"

"They've got your radios. They must be using them to communicate to each other."

"Does Rossi have one with him as well?"

"Yeah, he's been running communications between us and Garcia since we have no cell service out here."

"And we can't call out to him where we are without tipping off the Unsubs." Hotch thought aloud. "And they would be here a lot faster than the cavalry could."

"So what's the plan?" Morgan asked, eyes scanning the exhausted looking group.

"We somehow need to get a message to Dave without the Unsubs understanding it. If we let him know that you found us, he can have Garcia trace your radio signals and send help. Unfortunately with this weather a chopper is out of the question. I'm hoping that the storm has slowed down the Unsubs, but they're still closer to us than Dave."

"Okay, so what do we do about it?"

Hotch looked from JJ, who looked up him with big anxious blue eyes, to Morgan and Reid who waited impatiently for his reply. Hotch pointed at Morgan's hip and replied;

"I'm tired of being hunted. We're armed now. It's time we set a trap of our own."

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><p><em>Author's Note: Yay! The band's all back together again! This one was tough to write, click it and let me know what you think! <strong> Elvenlaughter<strong>, don't worry, it's coming!_


	10. Chapter 10

_Author's Note: I'm back! So sorry it has taken me so long to give you an update. The holidays were crazy and then my computer crashed and I lost all my files...no fun! But here it is. Its short, but I have to get back into my writing groove somehow right. Hope you like it. I have big plans for the end of this story. Read on!_

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><p>Rossi looked up at the sudden crackle from the radio on the desk in front of him. He reached over to answer it, when the voice cleared up and he realized it wasn't Morgan's voice coming from the distorted speakers. Whoever was speaking was being drowned out by wind racing across the hand mic, but he could make out what sounded like vague directions being given to a second party. His suspicion was confirmed when a second unfamiliar voice answered back. Just as he was picking up the device to advise the unknown users that they had accidently jumped onto an emergency police frequency, a very familiar voice cracked out clearly.<p>

"We interrupt your scheduled programming to advise that the Newport Police Department has issued an Amber alert for all of Johnson County. At approximately 10:20 this morning, five year old Penelope Garcia was reported missing from her family's campsite near the Arrowhead hiking trail at the north ridge of Sunset Canyon. Search and Rescue teams will be continuing their search northeast of Penelope's last known location and will be accepting volunteers in their search efforts. Campers report seeing two unknown subjects in the vicinity of the campsite just prior to her disappearance. Subjects are reported as two large build Caucasian males. If you have any information regarding the location of Penelope, please contact the Newport Police Department or the Amber Alert hotline at 119-4826."

Reid's voice disappeared in a loud crackle of static and Rossi dropped the pen he had been using to write down the information that Reid had passed on and reached for his phone when it rang in his hands.

"The radios are on!" Garcia shouted into his ear before he had even acknowledged her.

"I know. The unsubs are using the radios to talk to each other. I think Morgan and JJ have found the others. Reid just sent a transmission in the form of an Amber alert. They're trying to tell us where they are without tipping off the Unsubs."

"Wait, what? Unsubs, with an S? As in two of more of them?"

"According to Reid there are 2 large built white males. Garcia, bring up a map of Sunset Canyon and find the Arrowhead trailhead. Reid said that a little girl went missing at 10:20 am. 10-20 is standard police 10 codes is calling for a location. Reid said the Search and Rescue team should look north. Check the map for any strong extraction points anywhere north of their location within a few miles."

"There's nothing really out there. A river and a couple of the old mine shafts."

"Maybe they're going to hole up in one of the mine shafts. You're sure nothing else pops out at you?"

"Rossi I'm sure. What else did Reid say in his alert?"

Rossi read back his notes he had taken while Reid was speaking, and the dead silence on the other end of the line told him Garcia was listening intently.

"Hold on," she said immediately after he finished. "Does Morgan or JJ have a map on them?"

"Yeah. Morgan has the typographical map. What are you thinking?"

"The phone number. If someone were to report on an Amber alert they would need an area code."

He could hear the rapid tapping of her brightly covered fingernails assaulting the keyboard before she chirped back in his ear.

"Bingo! It's not 119-4826, its 119-48-26, which just happens to be the exact longitude of one of the mines on the typo map."

"Garcia, you're angel!" He hollered while shooting to his feet, grabbing the radio and heading for the door.

"Bring them home Rossi."

Rossi hung up the phone and barked orders at the room of deputies to get word to the search teams out in the field. They had an exact destination and they needed to make a direct route to the coordinates. Satisfied with the sudden energy buzzing throughout the station, Rossi made a beeline out the door and hopped into the SUV. He was going to do exactly as Garcia had asked. He was bringing his team home.

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><p>Reid handed the radio and map back to Morgan and shrugged his shoulders. They had acted as quickly as possible in interrupting the radio transmission before Rossi answered the Unsubs radio calls. Hopefully he had caught on and was sending the search team to the most prominent looking mine shaft on the map. Rossi's lack of response to either of the transmissions was a good sign that he had understood and now all they had to do was get to the mine before their hunters caught up to them. As warm and protective as the run down cabin was, it stood out too much as an obvious place for them to hide. With the Unsubs possibly armed with the rifles from their own SUV, they were sitting ducks that they could pick off through the gaps in the windows and splintering wood before the agents could even see where it was coming from.<p>

"How far is the mine from here?" JJ asked, dropping her gaze to Prentiss who appeared to still be sleeping soundly despite the noise they had been making.

"It's only about a half mile." Reid answered quietly.

"Can she make it that far?"

JJ hated asking the question. Emily Prentiss was the strongest woman she had ever met. On any given day the brunette agent could walk into the bullpen with an air of confidence that just spread throughout the room like a contagion. It unnerved her to see the tough agent reduced to the still and silent woman lying in front of her, the wheezing movements of her chest the only evidence that she was even still with them.

"She'll make it. Even if I have to carry her there, she'll make it." Morgan spoke and walked around to the front of the couch.

Prentiss looked even worse up close then she had from a few feet away. Her cheeks were pink and sticky with sweat, dried rain and dirt. He set his hand on her shoulder, and carefully pulled the dusty quilt down and tossed it on her feet.

"Prentiss. Wake up girl, it's time to go." He said giving her shoulder a gentle shake and tried to ignore the heat emanating off her skin despite the chill in the drafty room.

Emily's eyebrows furrowed and she turned her head slightly away from his voice as if to tell him to go away and let her sleep. Instead he gave it another shake and spoke a little louder. Finally she mumbled something and blinked up at him.

"Morgan?" she wheezed.

"Hey girl. Since when do you get to sleep on the job?"

He flashed her a smile and a wink and she rewarded him with a lazy lopsided smirk. He'd take it.

"When did you get here?" she asked while moving to sit up with Morgan's help.

Pulling up carefully on her shoulders to help her into a sitting position, Morgan tried his best to ignore the pained moan that snuck past her lips at the movement and hollow rattling coughing fit that followed. Once she was settled and the coughs had subsided, Morgan sat back, resting his hands on her knees and looking straight up into her eyes with a seriousness that made her nervous.

"Listen Prentiss, the extract team is on its way, but we've got a little bit of a hike to do to get there. I know you probably hurt like hell right now, but the sooner we get going, the sooner we can get you to a hospital."

She blinked back at him for a moment, her tired mind trying to make sense of his bluntness. Leave it to the unflappable Derek Morgan to lay it all out in a clean little row. She nodded her understanding simply because she didn't feel like she could afford the breath required to voice it and he carefully helped her stand.

The rest of the team watched Morgan pulled their injured friend from the couch and into a standing position. She swayed and her hand shot out in reflex and grabbed the nearest thing to her. JJ reacted quickly to the sudden death grip Emily had taken on her arm, as if the floor itself had tipped and threatened to dump her back onto the couch.

"Are you alright?" JJ asked her once she seemed a little more balanced.

Emily nodded and once Morgan was confident that JJ had a hold on her and wouldn't let her crash to the floor, he released his grip on her and pulled his gun from his holster and handed it over to Hotch and then to his ankle holster for his backup gun and gave it to Reid. If his hands were going to be full with the task of keeping Prentiss on her feet for the next hour or so that it would likely take them to get to the mine, he could at least arm the other two agents that will be responsible for watching his ass while he did.

Once they had made sure Prentiss was wrapped as comfortably as possible in the stolen jacket and Morgan and JJ had stripped themselves of their windbreakers to share some warmth and protection from the rain to Hotch and Reid, they carefully checked the windows to make sure their immediate area was clear of threats. Hotch looked back to his team, haggard, tired, injured and all burning with determination. They looked a mess, but they were together now, and together they had hunted down much worse criminals then the two behemoth unsubs they were dealing with now. With a new found purpose and a goal in mind, Hotch flung the door open, giving them all a moment to acclimate to the freezing wet wind before leading them out into the wilderness.

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><p><em>Author's Note: And there you have it. Its nothing spectacular but its something and its a start. I'll get back into my swing of things quickly now that I've got time again. Hope everyone had a great Christmas and a Wonderful New Year! Please Review!<em>


	11. Chapter 11

_Author's Note: Its short I know, but its building up, stick with me!_

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><p>Ben Lambert stared down at the dripping radio in his hand. The sudden alert that had interrupted his conversation with Paul had surprised him and for a moment he though he may have pressed a button on the device by accident and switched channels.<p>

"Hey Ben, did you just get an Amber Alert on your radio?" Paul's voice cracked over the radio.

"Yeah I heard it. Hold on a minute."

Ben thought for a moment. If the police had a search party heading in their direction in search of a little girl, they needed to hurry. If they stumbled upon the team themselves, they could easily play off as survival guides offering their assistance in the search for the missing girl. But if the team found the agents first, they would be in serious trouble. They needed to finish this game and they needed to do it fast.

"Change of plan Buddy." He spoke into the mic. "We can't afford to wait out this storm anymore. We need to get moving. Regroup at the old station house, and no more talking on the radio. I don't want to hop back onto the police frequency."

Ben turned off the radio and tossed it down into the mud with a small splash. It had seemed like a good idea to use them in order to split up and possibly flank the agents once they caught up to them. Now, with the police presence closing in on them, he decided they were better off sticking together.

He stood up and ran his hand through his wet hair and took a moment to breathe in the rain scented air. This was it. This was the part of the hunt that excited him. The goal was in range, the challenge at its highest point. He could feel the adrenaline tingling throughout his body as he let the rain soak his face. He turned his face to the sky and realized the sun was beginning to rise behind the thick layer of clouds. The movement stung and pulled at his aching muscles and reminded him of the bruises that now covered his neck and he felt the anger bubble up in his gut. The woman had surprised him. Once given the keys, she was supposed to have run, fled the bunker and run back to the police and returned with their real target. Agent David Rossi would have run blindly back to them in a feeble attempt to save his friends, thus running headlong into the trap they had set.

Of course it had been Paul's plan. Ben didn't care if the senior agent showed up or not. He had read one of the books that he obsessed over and was unimpressed. But Paul had taken the years of experience and extensive knowledge that littered their worn pages as a personal challenge in being the one person who would outsmart their author. He wanted so badly to be the subject of a book like those. Ben doubted his partner could outsmart even a newly graduated agent of the FBI, but the idea of hunting down the very team of agents that had been sent initially to Newport to solve the five murders that he himself was responsible for, had enticed him into a partnership.

The plan had been genius in its simplicity. Lure a couple of the agents onto the backwoods road in hopes of speaking to a witness; overpower them on the road and take them to the bunkers; release one to run back and inform Rossi about what had happened and in a personal mission to save his friends, Agent Rossi would come back to the bunkers where their trap would be waiting. Not now. The plan had been derailed by that woman. She had ruined it and had hurt him in the process. More than the bruises and cuts, she had hurt his pride. His anger rolled through him again and the wind and rain was quickly forgotten. He replaced his hat on his dripping hair and checked the chamber of the rifle. Satisfied at the sound of the bullet sliding into place, he smiled and began the short walk to meet with Paul. Yes, the woman had hurt him, but he was confident that what he would do when he got his hands on her again would quickly surpass any of the pain he felt from the bruises encasing his neck.

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><p>"We need to hurry Hotch." JJ whispered to her boss after listening to the short exchange in her radio's ear bud. "They are on the way to the cabin and sounds like they gave up on communicating with the radios. We're in the dark on where they're at again."<p>

Hotch looked ahead that the backs of his friends. Without instruction or even hand gestures, they had quickly fallen into a natural protective circle around their injured agent. Reid led the way, occasionally stopping to get his bearings from the surroundings, which was getting easier now that the sun was coming up. He was careful in choosing paths that would be easiest for Morgan to guide Prentiss over, as he held her close, trying to keep his grip on her waist from jarring her injured ribs.

Morgan flinched at the hiss of pain that Prentiss breathed past his ear as he tried to help her step from a large rock and his elbow tapped against her side. The slow pace in which they were moving was grading on his nerves and he hated himself for feeling that way. From the tight rasping sounds coming from Prentiss as her lungs fought to fill with the shallow bouts of cold air, it was a miracle that she was on her feet and moving at all. Once, her footing had slid in the mud and he caught her from going down only to have her whimper and drop her head against his chest in pain when he'd caught her weight on her injured side. He had immediately wanted to just scoop her up into his arms and carry her the rest of the way, but he knew she would fight him on it. It was probably for the best anyway, since the uneven and slick terrain threatened to trip him with every step. The last thing she needed was for him to pick her up only to trip and fall on top of her. Instead he gave her a few minutes to catch her breath and regain her balance as best as she could before urging her to keep moving.

Hotch and JJ had taken the rear of the group, slightly staggered apart and watching the wilderness at their backs for any signs of an impending attack. Now that they knew from the radio call that they were close to the station house, Hotch was getting nervous. He had really hoped that the men would have hunkered down for the remainder of the storm, but the wishful thinking had been shattered by the one simple radio call between the unsubs. They had made a quick plan on getting to the mine in hopes that it would protect them from the weather as well as narrow down the points of attack that could be taken by their pursuers. Beyond that, they hadn't really thought of what actions they would need to take to ensure their survival. If they were lucky, the unsubs wouldn't suspect Morgan and JJ had reunited with them yet and would assume them to be unarmed. Armed however, it was three against two and Hotch knew his team was very capable of turning this game back around on the overconfident hunters. It wasn't much of a plan, but it was all they had to go on. Now they just needed to get Emily into the cover of the mine where they wouldn't have to worry about her taking a bullet among her various injuries.

_Keep moving Em._ _We're gonna get you out of this. _He thought to himself while watching Morgan gently help her down another slope. _ Just hang on._

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><p>Ben knew that the station house was empty before he had even stepped onto the dilapidated old porch. The large smattering of various footprints in front of the steps and around the outsides of the house told the story to his trained eyes. Their friends from the bunker had made it there first, and judging by all the footprints they had left in a hurry.<p>

"Where are they going?" Paul asked, walking up behind him and following the trail of prints off into the woods with his eyes.

"I have no idea." He confessed. "But they're not far ahead of us. They'll be armed Paul. Don't get stupid and stay to the trees."

With that simple conversation they were off the porch and in a perfectly practiced maneuver they split, each going to one side of the print trail and disappearing into the trees.

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><p>Rossi drove like a mad man. The pickup he drove was 4 wheel drive, but as he bounced off another deep rut in the muddy road, he wish for just a few more inches of clearance between the under carriage and the road. Shortly after getting off the phone with Garcia, he had driven to the Ranger's headquarters only a few miles from the police station and met with a few officers. He showed them the map and where he believed his friends to be heading and his heart leapt into his throat when one of the Rangers pointed out that the small dirt road that let up to the abandoned station house was still drivable with a 4 wheel drive. He had quickly traded his FBI issue black SUV for a borrowed Ranger truck and floored the accelerator in the direction of the dirt road. If he could manage to get to the station house, they would have a vehicle transport to get them back off the mountain after the rescue team located them. With his friend's safety in mind, he gunned the engine again and held tight as he bounced roughly down the road.<p>

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><p><em>Author's Note: Well there ya go! Next chapter...The final showdown. Who will walk away, and who won't? Thoughts? Click it and share!<em>


	12. Chapter 12

_Author's Note: Okay guys and gals, here it is! I struggled a bit with it and I really hope you can keep up with it. Its fast and the POV jumps around a little bit. **Elvenlaughter**, this is the chapter you've been waiting for! Enjoy!_

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><p>Spencer Reid had never felt so tired in his life. His legs felt like jello as he pushed himself up the small slope, wedging his toe into a small cropping of rock for balance and turning back to grab Emily's hand and help Morgan pull her up the small step. Once he was sure she was balanced, he turned his attention over her shoulder to Hotch and JJ, who had posted themselves about 20 yards away and were scanning the area while Reid and Morgan got Prentiss of the patch of rough terrain. Once Emily was up and they were moving again, Hotch and JJ quickly fell into step behind them.<p>

_It's got to be close._ Reid thought to himself. _Please let it be close._

He was pulled violently from his thoughts as the ground under his foot vanished and he dropped to his rear with a yelp. With his attention averted to the trees and hills in front of him, he had overlooked the overgrown edges of the deep hole that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Before he realized what had happened, he was sliding, sinking further into the hole and he blindly reached out for a hold before the wet soil gave way completely.

"Reid!" Morgan shouted when the young doctor had suddenly sunk into the ground a few feet away from him.

At the quick push of Prentiss's hand against his arm telling him to go, he abandoned her side and sprinted the few feet to the edge of the hole that had swallowed his friend. He released the whoosh of air from his chest when his eyes fell onto Reid's muddy arms clamped tightly around a small tree. He had already kicked one foot up over the side of the hole and was pulling himself back up when Morgan slid to a stop next to him and grabbed him by the arm and belt and pulled him up out of the deep hole.

"Jesus Reid. You scared the hell outa me." Morgan grumbled, wiping his muddy hands on his jeans. "That thing looks deep."

"Yeah" Reid agreed, rolling onto his knees. "It's a mine shaft."

"Please don't tell me that's the mine we're looking for." Morgan pleaded, staring at the useless hole.

"I don't think so. There are mine shafts all over the place out here. For it to actually be marked on the map, I think it would have to be an actual mine. There would be an opening and tunnels that lead to the actual shafts like this one."

"So this is good then, we're getting close?" JJ asked, as she and Hotch joined them in a panic at losing one of them.

"It has to be."

"Then let's get moving. They're going to catch up to us soon. I'd rather not be out here in the open when they do." Hotch instructed.

They nodded all around and Morgan quickly cleared the short distance to where Emily had leaned her backside against a tree and had bent over with one hand on her knee and the other around her middle. As he got to her side he could hear the wet rattle in her chest as she fought to get air and he squatted down in front of her to look up at her face.

"Emily talk to me." He said, setting his hand on top of the one on her knee. "We're almost there. We gotta get moving."

"Just, give me," she coughed, "give me a second."

He watched her struggle to breathe with her eyes clenched shut while all the strength in her posture quickly began to fade and her hands trembled.

"Emily?"

She shook her head no, refusing to agree with the inevitable fact that her body was done fighting, and she pushed herself forward and off the tree to continue walking. However, her body refused to obey her command and her feet denied her steps. Her knees buckled and she was falling. Morgan caught her easily as she fell into him and lifted her limp body up into his arms.

"What happened?" JJ asked, jogging to his side and looking over the unconscious woman.

"She passed out." He said simply and motioned for Reid to keep moving. "We can deal with it when we get out of this damn rain."

Morgan was pissed now. She had been suffering with every agonizing step of the hike this far, and yet kept going as he forced her to put one foot in front of the other. He was worried and he turned that worry into anger. He was pissed off at the situation, at himself for making her overexert herself, and mostly he was pissed at the men responsible for hurting her in the first place. Her dead weight was heavy and awkward in his arms until he was able to shift her until her head was resting against his chest instead of lolling painfully over his elbow. JJ helped by setting her limp arm onto her stomach and tucking the oversized jacket in around her. He nodded his appreciation and they moved forward with JJ now at his side and Hotch to bring up the rear alone.

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><p>Ben watched the man scoop the woman up into his arms through the scope of his rifle and grinned. When he thought he had heard a loud voice from about a hundred yards away, he had laid down in the soil and brought the scope up to get a view of what was ahead. He had been right that the other agent's hat caught up to their friends at the cabin, but now he was pleased to find that one of them was currently indisposed with the job of carrying his partner. That left only three of them armed with handguns, while he and Paul both had long rifles and the element of surprise.<p>

"Do you see them?" Paul whispered from his side. "Who was yelling? Was it Rossi?"

"Yeah, I see 'em, and no, it wasn't Rossi."

"Where's Rossi?"

"He's not there Paul."

"What do you mean he isn't there?" Paul whined and brought his own scope up to scan the area.

"I mean he's not there. Now shut up and get down."

"No." Paul spit back. "I'm tired of listening to you! You said this plan would work and that Rossi would come out here after them. So far we've only succeeded on getting really fuckin wet and cold, and now there are five of them, and a whole shit load of police search and rescue people out here! I say we just end this thing right now."

"He's gonna show up Paul. Just shut up and listen to me!"

"Go to hell Ben."

Paul lifted the scope back to his eye, zeroed in on the closest target that was out away from a tree and set his finger to the trigger.

"For Christ's sake Paul, anyone around is going to hear that shot!"

Ben grabbed at Paul's leg which only knocked him slightly off balance and his hand to instinctively clench, firing off the round.

"Damn it Paul!" Ben yelled, shooting up to his feet and moving to stand with his back against a tree. "Listen to me! These aren't deer, they shoot back! Get your ass behind something. Here's what we're going to do, you take the right, and I'll take the left, get around them and for god 's sake, stay in cover! We can't fire anymore rounds with these if we can help it cause that damn search party will hear them and come running."

"Then what the hell are we supposed to use?"

Ben pulled the large hunters knife from his belt and waved it at him.

"If you do what I tell you and stay unseen while we get around behind them we can take them out. You take out the blond and the skinny guy, I'll take out Hotchner. They're the only ones armed. Once they're down you can have the other guy, but Paul, I get Prentiss."

Paul stared in surprise at his partner. He expected them to take out three armed agents with nothing but hunting knives. The man was crazy. There wasn't a chance they could succeed in that. But the darkness that had taken over his eyes warned him not to argue and to agree to anything. Once he had escaped the close proximity of the wild man, he would use his rifle and hope that Ben didn't shoot him just for disobeying him. Paul nodded and slunk away into a nearby bush and hurried toward their prey.

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><p>Hotch had just scanned the area behind them as they started to move again when the tree next to his head exploded into a barrage of splinters, sending him sprawling into the mud. The rest of the team instinctively dropped low to the ground and took cover from the gunshot that pierced through the wind. Morgan had fallen backwards onto his butt and slid his back into a tree, pulling Prentiss back into his chest as JJ slid in next to him and raised her gun up in front of her.<p>

"Hotch?" Morgan yelled, ignoring Prentiss's flinch at the sound in her ear.

"I'm fine!" Hotch yelled back, having rolled to the other side of the wounded tree and wiping at the blood dripping from the splinters in his face. "Do you see them?"

"I can't see anything!" JJ answered.

"Me neither!" Reid added from a few feet to their right.

Hotch swore and risked a glance around the tree knowing full well that he wouldn't see anything. Their attackers were armed with long rifles and had way more distance then they had with their handguns. They would be able to pick them off one by one. And then the thought struck him; how had they missed him when he was standing up in the open? He should have been an easy target. Something had happened.

"Jayje," Morgan whispered, noting that Prentiss was waking up.

JJ blinked at him confused for a second before realizing that Emily was awake and trying to talk to her. She quickly handed Morgan the gun and leaned low to hear what she was saying.

"They're flanking.." she wheezed and JJ's eyebrows shot up and her head whipped around.

"She thinks they're flanking us." She repeated to Morgan, who pushed himself into a crouch and peeked around the tree.

"I think she's right." He answered. "Stay here."

"What? Wait, Derek where are you going?"

Morgan ran in a crouch into a large bush and disappeared, leaving her to protect Emily with nothing but her charming good looks. She swore silently and then smiled down to Prentiss trying to reassure her. Emily rolled her eyes in return, even in her half delirious state she knew they were in trouble.

The silence seemed to drag on forever, making their nerves burn and their hearts pound. Hotch was just about to change position when suddenly an enormous hand shot around the side of the tree he was leaning against and grabbed his gun hand. He tensed in surprise, firing off a shot into the air before he found himself facing a damn angry face of the giant from the bunker. Ben smacked his hand into the tree, grinding it into the bark and forcing his hand open and drop the gun. Hotch reacted quickly and a left hook, catching Ben in the face and threw him off balance. His monstrous hand refused to release its death grip on his arm and Hotch found himself rolling down a slight slope with Ben on top of him. Ben threw another heavy punch and Hotch felt a crack as all the air left his lungs. Another hit and he saw stars.

Reid jumped at the sound of Hotch's gun going off so close to him. He turned quickly; gun raised but didn't have a shot without hitting Hotch. He stood from his spot behind the tree and shouted to the unsub, hoping the gun in his hands would distract him long enough for Hotch to make a move. Where the hell had Morgan gone? He heard a loud crack to his left and turned just as the large form of the other Unsub flew from the brush and hit him, taking him down into the mud hard. The gun flew from his hands and landed a few feet away from him in a small puddle. Reid kicked out furiously, fighting with everything he had to get the man off of him. Paul's hand shot up to his neck and squeezed, making Reid's eyes tear with the pressure and he swung out wildly catching his attacker in the eye. Paul released his neck and simultaneously swung his fist, making Reid see stars as he reached for the knife in his belt.

"Where's the other one?" Ben shouted, leaving the unconscious Hotch behind him.

Paul pulled his attention from the squirming man beneath him to look at his partner and shrugged. He watched as Ben stalked up to the two women, laughing as the blonde stood, glaring at him.

JJ ignored Emily's weak protest as she stood and faced the man towering over her. She looked from Hotch, laying a few feet away to Reid, who kicked and squirmed under the weight of the man holding a knife to his neck. She wasn't sure what she was doing, but she knew Morgan was nearby, she just had to hold him off long enough for something him to make his move.

"Let him go." She nodded toward Reid.

"Why on earth would he do that?" Ben laughed and took a step toward her.

She stood her ground and stared up at him.

"Because if you don't, I put a bullet your head." Morgan stepped out of the shrubs with his gun trained closely against Paul's head.

Ben turned slowly to face him, eyes settling right on his and he grinned. Morgan's throat tightened. This man didn't care whether his partner lived or not. He had to think fast, there were too many variables and Morgan was the only one of them armed.

"Go ahead." Ben growled and shrugged his shoulders.

Paul's eyes went wide as the words left his mouth. Ben had just thrown him to the wolves. He stared up at his partner, who stared right back at him, and in an instant he understood what he was supposed to do. Ben nodded and spun around, throwing himself into the blonde.

JJ yelped in surprise at the sudden attack and Morgan's instincts swung his gun around toward the movement and fired. The bullet hit him in the shoulder, and he spun, his momentum plowing into JJ and taking her down into the ground. The momentary distraction was all Paul needed and he spun around on his knees, thrusting the knife in his hands up as he stood, sinking it in deep through the Kevlar vest and into the agent's gut. Morgan dropped the gun at the blinding pain that shot from his stomach to his toes and made his eyes flash in white fury.

"Morgan!" Reid shouted from behind him.

Ben heard the yell from the doctor and pushed himself up only to find himself face to face with a very pissed off looking Agent Prentiss.

"Looks like it hurts." She said looking at the bleeding hole in his shoulder.

He flashed her and evil smile and leaned down close, ignoring the sounds of a struggle happening behind him.

"Until next time," he growled and for good measure swung his fist down hard, connecting with her jaw and sending her sprawling into the dirt before sprinting off into the woods.

Spencer Reid had never considered himself a fighter, but at the sight of the knife sinking deep into his friends stomach a blind panic washed up from his toes. As Paul pulled the knife out and prepared to thrust it in again, Reid pushed himself up and ran toward him, picking up as much speed as possible in the short distance. He hit him like a line backer in a tackle that jarred him from his shoulders to his back, but it knocked the beast of a man sideways, sending them both to the ground. The knife flew from his hands and Reid watched as it slid down into the mine shaft. His eyes went wide, he had forgotten it was there, he just needed to get him a little closer. He pushed himself up to his feet, ignoring the pain in his battered shoulder and kicked out with all of his might, connecting with hunter's ribs just for good measure. Paul growled and jumped back up, tackling Reid again and landing a solid punch. Reid saw stars and for a moment he forgot what he had been thinking.

"Spence!"

JJ's urgent voice brought him back to real time and he fisted his hands together and brought them down into the man's nose. Paul yelled and reeled back, grabbing at the bloody appendage. Reid took the opportunity and brought both of his feet up and as hard as he could kicked out, landing them in the center of the man's chest and he fell backwards. Reid watched in slow motion as Paul's hands flew out away from his broken nose as he realized he was falling backwards and there was nothing underneath him to stop his fall. As he disappeared into the abyss, Reid actually let himself smile. No one could ever say he wasn't a fighter.

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><p><em>Author's Note: Boo Ya! and Reid gets the badass award! What could possibly be left to do? Oh yeah, they have to get off the mountain! Rossi to the rescue!<em>


	13. Chapter 13

_Author's Note: Haha, you people crack me up with your "My Good Lord!", "Holy Hell!" and my person favorite "Shoot Frickin Hell!" reviews. Glad that you are all so sucked into my story and for those of you who I am "killing" with suspense, I wouldn't want to kill off any readers so here you go. New chapter, all shiny and new and wrapped in the Sunday comics just for you! Enjoy!_

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><p>"Agent Rossi!"<p>

The earpiece squawked in his ear, surprising him with its volume and causing him to swerve. He swore under his breath at the search team and keyed up the mic to answer.

"This channel is running silent officer." Rossi scolded.

"Yes sir, but we believe we are close to your agents. We heard gun shots nearby."

"What's your location?"

"Just nearing the coordinates you sent us. The shots sounded like they came from just south of here."

"Go, wherever you heard the shots, go there!" Rossi shouted into the mic. "I'm just pulling in to the Ranger's station now."

Rossi slid the pickup through the mud and to a sideways stop in front of the rickety old cabin. He hopped out, strapped his vest a little tighter and checked the magazine to the MP5 before sliding it in and racking the action to lock a round into the chamber. He quickly scanned the area around the house for threats before taking off at a run in the direction of his team.

"Morgan? JJ?" he shouted into his radio, remembering that they each had one, even though they had been told to run silent so the unsubs wouldn't hear. Now that the search team had reported shots fired, he figured radio communication was the least of his worries. "Morgan?"

"I copy you Rossi" Mogans voice finally breached the speaker in his ear. "Where are you?"

"I'm near the Ranger house and headed your way. The search team is right on top of you somewhere. They heard gunshots. Are you alright?"

Rossi could hear the strain in Morgan's voice and it had him worried. Had Morgan been shot? Had anyone else been hurt?

"Rossi, it's JJ," the blonde's voice took over. "No one's been shot, but Hotch, Morgan and Prentiss are down. One of the Unsubs got away."

JJs voice was octave higher than usual, and Rossi could tell she was starting to panic. He picked up his pace and continued to talk to her as he ran.

"JJ, calm down. What happened to the others?"

"They got the drop on us Rossi. One of them stabbed Morgan and the other one knocked out Hotch. Prentiss, hell Rossi I don't know what's wrong with Prentiss. Where are you?" JJs voice went shrill again.

"I'm coming JJ. Just try and stay calm and keep them stable until we get there."

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><p>Up at the mine, JJ was kneeling in front of Morgan while having an invisible conversation with the voice in her ear. Morgan had slid down a tree and accepted the wadded up jacket that JJ had taken off and pressed in against the bloody section of his midriff. He looked over her shoulder at Reid, who had rolled Prentiss onto her back, checked her pulse and then moved over to Hotch. From the looks of it, Hotch was starting to come to and Morgan let out a pained sigh of relief.<p>

"Jayje, I'm fine." He said, catching her teary blue eyes with his. "You need to figure out what's going on with Prentiss. I'm not going anywhere."

She blinked at him a few times before taking a deep breath and nodding. She stood up on shaky legs and covered the short distance around the deep hole and knelt down next to Prentiss. Now that she was focused completely on her, she noticed the thin line of blood trailing from the corner of her mouth that bubbled with every wheezing breath that she took. A deep bruise was forming against the pale skin of her cheek and for a moment JJ wondered if it been there when they found them at the cabin. She shook the thought, and gently brushed the hair from her face and tapped her other cheek lightly.

"Come on Em, wake up. You gotta tell me what's going on with you." JJ pleaded. No response.

JJ shivered, from the cold or the pure panic of their situation, she wasn't sure. She looked up at the movement in front of her and noticed that Reid had woken Hotch and was helping him to his feet. Hotch looked a little wobbly and was bleeding from his nose, but he was up and moving. He pointed for Reid to help Morgan and he took a moment get his bearings before coming over to kneel next to her.

"What happened?" he asked quietly.

"Lambert hit her." She answered simply. "Hotch I tried, I tried to stop him from doing anything to her but he jumped at me, and then Morgan shot him, and then I went down. Then you were unconscious and Morgan got stabbed and then he hit Emily. Everything happened so fast, Hotch I'm sorry." JJ's shaky voice bombarded him in rapid succession and he did the only thing he could think of to calm her down.

JJ was shocked when the unit chief grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her into a bear hug. At first she was tense, her nerves frayed by all that had just happened. By the thoughts of three of her friends hurt and the feelings of complete and utter helplessness. But the warm contact with his chest, and the audible beating of his heart in her ear suddenly calmed her.

"It's not your fault JJ." Hotch said.

Once he felt her relax he pulled away and held her shoulders, forcing her to look at him and asking if she was okay. JJ felt the panic leave her body, defeated by the strength she found in her boss and she nodded.

"Agent Morgan! Agent Jareau?"

Voices echoed over the rain and reverberated around the small section of the woods, calling out their names.

"Over here!" Hotch yelled out toward the voices.

A few seconds later a small group of dirty and wet combination of uniformed police officers, forest ranger's and sheriff's deputies broke through the tree line. Hotch shot to his feet and shook the hand of the Ranger who had been the first to come through the trees.

"We sure are glad to see you." Hotch said in an exhausted whoosh of air.

The Ranger took one look at the battered team in front of him and turned away from Hotch to the rest of the search team shouting orders. He shouted for a medic, and a pair of young men came trotting from the back of the group to his side. With a quick point of his finger, the men split up, one running to Morgan, the other to Prentiss.

"We've been looking for you for a long time Agent Hotchner." The Ranger said finally acknowledging him. "What the hell happened to you?"

"It's a long story." Hotch sighed.

"Agent Rossi is on his way up from a range house maybe a half mile from here. He's got a pickup parked there that will take your team down the mountain. We'll have an ambulance waiting on standby at the base of the road to take over. I wish we could get it up to the range house, but the road is just too washed out."

"I understand." Hotch nodded and watched the medics working on his injured teammates. "Can I borrow your radio?"

The Ranger handed Hotch his walkie and he stepped away to help the rest of the search team in assembling the pieces of the aluminum backboards they had pulled from their packs. Hotch granted himself a grin and made a note to thank whoever had invented the breakdown backboards for search and rescue operations.

"Rossi?" He keyed up the mic and waited for a response.

"Hotch?" Rossi answered breathless. "It's good to hear your voice. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine Dave. Listen the search and rescue team is here and the medics are working on Morgan and Prentiss. Once they stabilize them we're going to start our way back down to the range house. Where are you?"

"I'm about halfway between the house and you."

"Ok, Dave I want you to turn around and go back to the cabin. One of the unsubs got away and the last thing we need is for him to get behind you and take off with the truck."

"You have enough man power up there?"

"Yeah, we've got it covered. And Dave, be careful. He's a resourceful son of a bitch."

"You got it."

Hotch clicked off the mic and handed the radio back to the Ranger and turned his attention back to his team.

JJ watched as the young medic kneel at Emily's head and quickly pulled out a penlight from his shirt pocket and shone it into each of her eyes before replacing it and speaking.

"What's her name?"

It took JJ a second to realize he was talking to her while he worked on Emily and she shook her head to clear it before responding.

"Emily." She answered softly.

"Do you know what happened to her?"

"She was in roll over vehicle accident yesterday. She's definitely got a concussion and we think she's got some broken ribs. It's been really hard for her to breath and she was coughing a lot."

The medic nodded and pulled a green oxygen bottle from his pack and set it on the ground before pulling out a white plastic clamp attached to a cable that ran back to the pack. He handed her the clamp and instructed her to wipe the dirt off and clamp it to Emily's finger. She did as instructed and watched the medic's face as he stared at the machine readout and scowled.

"What? What is it?" JJ's voice shook.

"Whats your name Agent?" he asked as he dug deeper into his bag.

"Jennifer..JJ." she stuttered, confused.

"OK JJ, I need your help alright? Have you had any first aid training?"

"Yeah, we've had basic first responder training through the bureau. What do you need me to do?"

The medic pulled the plastic oxygen mask from the pack and she watched as he attached the mask to a bulky blue bag. He took a roll of tubing from a plastic bag and attached one end to the green oxygen tank and the other to the bag before turning the knob on the tank as it hissed to life and inflated the bag.

"What's that for?" JJ asked as he placed the mask over Emily's face and wrapped his large hand around it and gripped her chin, sealing the plastic firmly over her mouth and nose.

"She's breathing, but she isn't getting enough oxygen. Her injury isn't allowing her lungs to expand properly so we're just going to help her out a little." He responded and squeezed the bag, forcing its contents down into Emily's lungs.

"This is what I need you to do JJ. I need you to take over bagging for me so I can start an IV and get her ready for transport ok?"

"Just tell me what to do." JJ replied much more confidently than she felt as she scooted over next to him and kneeled at Emily's head.

"Take the bag. Now clamp your hand around the mask like this and make sure you have a tight seal so the air doesn't escape out the sides. Good. Now squeeze the bag slowly until its completely deflated." He demonstrated with a firm squeeze to the bag and JJ watched as Emily's chest rose with the motion and nodded.

"One breath about every five seconds, and make sure to wait until you've given her time to exhale before administering another breath okay?"

JJ nodded her understanding and he handed her the bag and disappeared behind her for a moment. He returned with an IV bag and JJ watch as he spiked the tube into the bag and expertly inserted the large bore needle into the underside of her forearm before taping it in place and wrapping a layer of gauze around it just to secure it tighter for the trek down the mountain.

"You're doing great JJ." He spoke softly while listening to Emily's chest with a stethoscope and counting the pulse beats under his fingers at her left wrist.

JJ was slightly taken aback by how easily the medic had calmed her nerves simply by giving her mind something else to focus on. Now that she was feeling confident again, she risked a look around the group of people. Another medic had cut Morgan's shirt open and now had it wrapped with a bulky pile of dressings and wrapped in gauze. Morgan was still awake and holding a plastic oxygen mask to his own face while watching everything going on around him. Reid sat on his knees at his side and while occasionally nodding to something Morgan said to him, his eyes were on her as he watched them work on Emily. She offered him a sympathetic smile that failed to reach her eyes and averted her attention somewhere else.

Farther to her right she found Hotch. He had busied himself with piecing together the aluminum pieces of the breakaway backboard and for a moment she wondered if he was going to be able to walk down the mountain unaided. As if feeling her eyes on him, he turned his head and made eye contact with her. She could see the worry in his eyes as he watched her squeezing air into the lungs of her best friend and she immediately realized he was dealing with the situation the same way she was. He was busying himself with something else, taking his mind off of what had happened and what still may happen. She offered him a small smile to reassure him that things were okay on her side of things and he nodded, took another look at Prentiss and turned his attention back to his task.

"How you guys doin here KC?" The Ranger that led the team addressed them while crouching down next to JJ.

"Good," the medic answered, "We're ready to go when you are. Just have to get her on the board and we'll be on our way."

"Good work." The ranger gave JJs shoulder a squeeze and stood to move on to check with the other medic.

A few minutes later, Hotch and a couple of police men came over carrying the now assembled aluminum backboard and knelt down in the mud next to them.

"Ok JJ," the medic, KC, addressed her. "When you're ready, we're going to roll her to her right side. They're going to put the board under her then we'll roll her back onto it. On your count,"

JJ gave the bag one last squeeze then set the bag down and gripped Emily's shoulders, supporting her head between her forearms while the medic gripped her waist and legs, ready to pull her up into him.

"1, 2, 3," JJ counted and on 3 they rolled her up onto her side while Hotch and one of the policemen slid the board up underneath her.

Together they rolled her back down onto the board and JJ immediately replaced the mask over her face and gave the bag another squeeze.

"Perfect." KC smiled at her and set to work at tucking a shimmering all weather blanket around her friend before he and Hotch went to work with the Velcro straps to secure her to the board for their trip down the mountain. "I believe you'd make one hell of a paramedic Jennifer."

JJ snorted at the comment but couldn't help the grin that found its way to her face at the thought.

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><p>From nearly a half mile away, Ben watched the actions of the team through the scope of the rifle he had retrieved after making his escape from the mine. He smiled as his crosshairs settled on the blonde as she squeezed the bag, forcing the life into her friend. He could easily take the shot and pick them off one by one. No, he wouldn't do that. He owed them a challenge, a hunt that would happen on his own terms. Now that his blundering idiot of a partner was gone, down the straight drop mine shaft, he didn't have to worry about anyone screwing things up. The agents were injured and surrounded by armed police men and forest rangers that knew these woods as well as Ben himself. No, this was not the time for an end game. He would hole up and tend to his own injury, and they would go home. Once he was healed, he would bring the game to them. See how they liked getting beat in their own backyard. He smiled and slung his rifle over his uninjured shoulder before slinking off into the bushes.<p>

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><p><em>Author's Note: Ok, Okay, So I was going to have Rossi run into Ben on the way up the mountain. But I decided it would be more fun to have Ben escape so I can bring him back in a sequel! Yes I know I'm evil. But wait til you read what I've got in mind for him! You'll forgive me. Now comes the fun part in getting them of the mountain! Click it and let me know what you think!<em>


	14. Chapter 14

_Author's Note: OMG you people crack me up! And **ShazFriend** haha! You can smiley face rape me anytime! I need to start giving out prizes for the most unique and entertaining reviews. OK, ok...seriously now. This chapter is dramatic, so much so that I actually had to ask my old paramedic partner for a refresher in field work. so put your serious faces on and Enjoy!_

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><p>The trek down the hillside was brutal as they fought with the uneven terrain and slick mud while the rain was unrelenting as it pelted down on them as they walked. Twice already JJ had to stop and refit the mask to Emily's face when either she or one of the men carrying the backboard lost their footing or slipped in the mud. She walked awkwardly sideways at the side of the board behind a deputy who held the weight of their side of the backboard while Hotch held the end at Emily's head and the medic held the other side. The lead ranger held the end at her feet behind his back and led them slowly down the hill, carefully trying to judge the easiest foot placements and calling back obstacles to the rest of the team. Morgan had refused the second backboard, deciding it would be much easier to walk, with the help of Reid, then to risk the remaining officers and deputies dropping him. With Ben still out there and armed, he felt more confident with the remaining man power as protection detail, watching their backs until they could get the hell out of there.<p>

Nearly an hour had passed since they left the site of the old mine shaft and Hotch felt like they had hardly covered any ground at all. When the medic had announced that Prentiss was stable enough to be moved, Hotch had instinctively moved to the head of the backboard and on the count of three, lifted with the other men until Prentiss lay between them, even with his waist. In the grips of five men, Emily weighed little in his hands, and he silently thanked the gods as his bruised ribs protested at even the slightest movement. As they walked he found his eyes kept falling from the path in front of him onto Emily's face. Her eyes gently flinched at the occasional contact of the rain hitting them, but other than that, she looked dead. The large gash on her forehead had somehow reopened during the struggle and she now had a large bruise marring her cheek underneath the bulky plastic mask. The blood from her split lip had dripped down into the edge of the mask and smeared up the side of her face every time JJ had to readjust it and for a moment he had the urge to wipe it off so he wouldn't have to look at it.

"Hotch?" JJs soft voice next to him pulled him from his thoughts and he looked up at her. "Are you okay? Maybe someone else should take over. You took a beating back there."

He thought for a moment. His ribs screamed at him and his head pounded in his ears and for a moment he thought that the pain was only an inkling of what Prentiss had been suffering while hiking through the forest for the past thirty-six hours. He shook his head no. He would take the pain. He deserved the pain for making her endure it.

"Hold up a sec." KC called out to the Ranger at the foot of the backboard. "I need to change out the IV bag real quick."

The Ranger nodded and shuffled the aluminum holds in his hands as he turned around to face the rest of them to lower her down for KC to change out the IV bag.

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><p>Rossi jogged back up next to the pickup truck and after catching his breath for a moment, began pulling things from the bed of the truck to clear room for the team coming down the hill. At this point he wished for the SUV that had more space and they would be protected from the elements, but the empty truck bed would have to do. He found a wadded up tarp under the backseat and shook it out. The plastic sheet would come in handy in keeping the rain off of the people in the back of the truck. After the front and back seat were cleaned out of the gear they didn't need, he was satisfied that they could fit four people in the cab of the truck, while the rest would have to ride in the back. The empty bed of the truck would also be long enough for the backboards. He did a quick count and decided it was plenty of space. Morgan, Reid, JJ, Prentiss and Hotch were a sure count on who would be riding back. He also counted off the two medics as absolute necessity passengers. Everyone else could wait behind for another vehicle to come pick them up. With nothing left to do but wait, he climbed back into the driver's seat and turned the key, turning the knob for the heater and warmed up the cab and listened to the radio, waiting.<p>

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><p>Emily felt like she was under a thick blanket that covered her face and made it difficult to breath. She attempted to push the blanket off of her, but found that her hand wouldn't obey her brain's commands. She could hear what sounded like distant voices and decided she must have left the tv in the other room on and ignored it. A slight movement from side to side made her stomach flip and she suddenly felt like she was swaying in a hammock. <em>What the hell is going on?<em> She thought to herself as she tried to pry her eyes open. Before she had a chance to work up the strength to open them, she stopped swaying and the thing suffocating her lifted away. Comfortable again, she decided that she really didn't need to wake up just yet. Her head was pounding and if she could only get a few more hours of sleep, the horrible headache might subside.

Just as she was sinking back into a deep sleep, the thing pressed back in over her face and before she could react, a wall of cold air was forced into her mouth and up her nose, making the breath hitch in her chest and change direction. She wanted to cough and push the thing away, but her hands refused to work. The voices barked out close to her, making her jump and her injured brain flashed images of monsters. Monsters of past cases, serial killers, kidnappers, and evil men mangled together with things of fairy tales with sharp teeth and glowing red eyes. Suddenly she was flying up into the air, making the butterflies in her stomach stir up again and she shot her hands out to catch herself or slow her ascent; anything to defend herself from the monsters moving in on her.

JJ had just replaced the mask over Emily's face and gave the bag another squeeze before the men carrying her backboard counted and lifted her back up to waist level. At the movement, Emily's arm shot out to her side, smacking the deputy that was holding the side of the backboard in front of JJ. Surprised by the sudden movement, his grip slipped on the aluminum and she tipped sideways, causing Hotch and the ranger to try and compensate for the sudden weight on the one side of the board. JJ reacted quickly and dropped the bag onto Emily's chest and grabbed the board, balancing her out before the medic yelled at them to set her back down.

Together they lowered the board to the ground and Hotch was surprised to see Emily's eyes open and wide, staring up at him frantically, but not seeing him as she continued to swipe her hands out to her sides.

"Prentiss. It's okay, we're on our way down." He spoke softly.

She blinked heavily, and turned her head to the side as a coughing fit took hold of her lungs. JJ's wide eyes shot from Emily's pained face to the medic across the board from her.

"Emily?" he called her name, reaching across the board and grabbing her hand that had shot out and now had the poor deputy in a weak grip.

She jerked the hand away from him and pushed weakly at him. He stood quickly, grabbing the penlight from his pocket and pushing Hotch aside as he knelt over her head. He grabbed her gently by the chin and forced her to look up at him and shined the light into her eyes and swearing under his breath when she swiped a hand up at his hand in a feeble attempt to pull her head away.

"It's okay Em," JJ spoke softly to her in an attempt to calm her, "It's JJ, you need to calm down."

Emily wasn't hearing any of it. She whimpered and cried out in pain as she continued to struggle weakly against the Velcro straps that secured her to the board and pushing away at everyone around her.

"What the hell is goin on?" Morgan asked from a few feet behind them.

Reid had been helping him step down a particularly steep section of the path when suddenly the small group in front of him set Emily's backboard down on the ground and was suddenly a flurry of activity.

"What's going on?" Hotch asked the medic as he reached around him and dug frantically through his pack.

"It's the head injury. She's waking up and doesn't know where she is. She's panicking." He answered matter of factly. "JJ, I need you to try and hold her arm so she doesn't pull that IV. Agent Hotchner, there is another oxygen mask in the large zipper pocket of my bag. I need you to get it, plug it into the tank and get it on her."

He directed the agents and pulled a couple of small clear liquid vials from the side compartment of his bag before addressing the other medic that had been attending to Morgan.

"Little help over here Doug."

The other medic abandoned his patient and came trotting over and kneeled down next to him, dropping his own bag from his shoulder.

"Whatcha got?" he asked over the hacking coughing from the woman in front of him.

"She's fighting the mask. I'm gonna have to intubate her before we lose the airway completely. Can you load me up? 1.5mg Lidocaine, 3mcg Fentanyl, .02 Atropine and .3 Etomidate."

JJ listened to the rapid fire conversation between the medics and quickly gave up on trying to understand it. She had taken the flimsy plastic mask that Hotch pulled from the bag and managed to get it over Emily's nose and mouth while he connected it to the oxygen tank. She tried talking to Emily in the most soothing voice she could muster under the circumstances, which came out more like the shaky voice of a scared child while Emily continued her attempt to escape the mask. For a moment they made eye contact and JJ was shaken by the lack of recognition in Emily's terrified gaze. She really had no idea what was going on and had looked right through JJ as if she wasn't even there.

Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, the medic Doug, plunged the loaded syringe into the port in the IV line and depressed it with his thumb, flooding its contents into the tube leading into Emily's arm. Shortly after, Emily's coughing fit began to subside and the movements in her hands became sluggish before she finally settled one of her hands weakly on top of JJs hand on the mask. She blinked heavily up at JJ, her eyes glazed over but slightly more coherent, and JJ spoke to her, telling her that she would be alright.

"Alright Doug, give her the Etomidate and get ready for intubation. JJ, when I tell you, I want you to remove the mask and then hand me that tube I set out there ok."

JJ nodded, not breaking eye contact with Prentiss. KC nodded to his partner, who stuck the needle into the IV line and injected its contents. Almost immediately, Emily's eyelids drooped and her eyes rolled back and then closed as the drug took effect.

"Ok JJ." KC directed and JJ pulled the mask away and handed it to Hotch before picking up the thick tube and watching as the medic tilted Emily's head back and forced her mouth open. When he moved to insert the laryngoscope JJ turned her head and looked back to Morgan and Reid who stood a few feet away watching in concern. Reid made eye contact with her and he gave her a sympathetic smile, offering her what little emotional support he could in the short distance. KC grabbed the tube from her outstretched hand and she quickly used her now empty hands to wipe at the tears that had escaped and trailed down her dirty cheeks.

Hotch watched JJ stand and turn her back to them when the medic grabbed Emily's head and he had to turn his own attention away when he forced the tube into her mouth and down her throat. His partner quickly placed the plastic mouth guard around the tube and against her mouth before strapping it around the back of her head to secure the tube in place for the rest of their hike. While the medics proceeded to hook up the oxygen bag to the mask and run a test of her vitals, Hotch stood and edged over to stand next to JJ.

"Are you alright?" he asked softly.

"I'm fine." She clipped back nodding quickly and frantically whipped at her eyes.

He stood quietly next to her and gave her a minute to get her emotions under control before speaking again.

"Why don't you help Reid and Morgan. One of the deputies can help carry the backboard."

Finally she looked over at him and offered him a short nod of her head before taking a deep, shaky breath and stepping away with a quick glance down at Prentiss.

"What happened?" Reid asked the moment she stepped up next to them.

"They uh, they had to intubate her." She answered quietly.

"What? Why?"

"She woke up and I don't think she knows where she is or what happened. She started freaking out. They were afraid of losing her airway."

The looks on their faces killed her and she had to get her mind on something else.

"How are you holding up?" she asked Morgan, pointing at the bulky dressing wrapped around his torso.

"I'll be fine."

"Looks like they're ready to move again," Reid interrupted, standing tall and peering over JJ's head as the group lifted the backboard and start walking again.

Reid and JJ helped Morgan back to his feet and they began the slow paced walk behind the rest of the team. None of them spoke. They didn't know what to say. So they stayed silent and focused on walking and helping Morgan.

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><p>Rossi was going stir crazy sitting alone in the vehicle waiting. He had already sent word to Garcia that they had found the others. She had immediately asked about their conditions and proceeded to freak out when he was forced to tell her that he only knew they were hurt and nothing more. She had jumped up from her seat and announced she was getting on the first plane out and would be there in a few hours before hanging up on him, leaving him to the silence of the truck cab and his thoughts.<p>

A movement in the trees to his left caught his attention and he grabbed the MP5 from the seat next to him and hopped out. He stood behind the door for cover and stared down the sights of the gun in the direction he had seen the movement. He released the air he held in his lungs in relief when JJ and Reid, supporting Morgan between them, emerged from the trees. The two deputies to their sides had their weapons drawn at him until they realized he was not a threat and quickly holstered their weapons as he lowered his.

"Thank god." He said as he ran up to them and took Morgan's weight from JJ's shoulders. "I was starting to get worried. Where are the others?"

"They're behind us." Reid answered breathlessly as JJ jogged the short distance to the truck and opened the passenger's side door.

"The ambulance is waiting for us at the main road." Rossi informed and together they helped Morgan into the seat and JJ covered him carefully with her coat.

Shortly after Morgan had settled himself into a semi comfortable position, he finally let himself relax and the pain began to set in. He closed his eyes to let the warmth of the inside of the truck wash over him and when he felt himself begin to dose off her was ripped from his sleep by JJ's shrill voice echoing in his ear.

"Derek! Wake up!" she begged and apologized at his discomfort when he scowled at her. "I'm sorry. Emily has me really freaked out ok. I can't lose you too right now."

"JJ, Emily's not gone. She's gonna be fine."

"You don't know that." She said barely above a whisper.

"JJ, look at me," he said sternly, grabbing her hand, "I do know that because Emily Prentiss is the strongest and most stubborn woman that I know. It's gonna take a whole hell of a lot more than a day in the rain and a bad cough to stop her from givin us hell every day."

JJ was slightly taken aback by the fire in his eyes and nodded at him and took another shaky breath to calm herself. He was right and she immediately felt guilty for doubting any of them.

"You're right. I'm sorry. Just please stay awake ok?"

"I'm not going anywhere Jayje." He assured her.

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><p><em>Author's Note: Ok, so for those of you on common ground with JJ and confused with WTF the medics were talking about, the procedure they did is what we in emergency medicine call a Rapid Sequence Intubation containing a 3 drug cocktail Lidocaine is used to suppress coughing and the gag reflex (so the patient won't puke on you) Fentanyl is a pretty extreme painkiller and sedative that increases blood pressure and used in patients suspected of having intracranial pressure, (aka Prentiss's head injury) and Atropine is basically used to control heart rhythms. After these take effect the Etomidate is a short acting paralytic agent which will basically put the patient under a short anesthesia. Now as I was only an EMT, I personally never performed this procedure in the field so if I screwed up a bit and you know better than me. Sorry! lol. <em>

_Now who said reading fanfiction never taught you anything? Hope you all enjoyed the little lesson and alot of drama. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up tomorrow. Click it and let me know what you think!_


	15. Chapter 15

_Author's Note: So sorry people! I had this chapter up and ready for you yesterday and then WHAM! The site decides it doesn't want me to be able to post it. So instead I tweaked it a little and added a little bit more details and this is the finished product. I received quite a few questions about my note in the last chapter and my former career. Yes, I used to be a firefighter/EMT before breaking my back in a car accident. (irony) Now I have an equally rewarding career that I love! So yeah, here's the new chapter. Enjoy!_

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><p>Rossi was pacing lines back and forth in front of the hood of the truck anxiously when the rescue team finally broke through the trees carrying the stretcher. He quickly jogged around the back of the truck and dropped the tailgate as they neared the vehicle and addressed Hotch.<p>

"There's an ambulance waiting down at the road."

Reid had given him a quick bit of information on what had happened during their confrontation with the Unsubs, but Rossi was unprepared for the extent of damage that had been done. The sight of his friend strapped to a board with a tube down her throat forcing her to breath stopped his heart in his chest and for a moment he felt as if he would fall over from the shock. The officers carefully lifted and slid the backboard into the bed of the truck and medics climbed in after it and kneeled down on either side of her. Hotch clapped his hand down onto Dave's shoulder, pulling him from his stare and addressed him.

"How's Morgan?"

"Oh, he's doing alright." He quickly shook off his surprise and helped Hotch climb into the back of the truck. "Let's get you guys outa here."

"Drive gently Dave."

And gently he did, with Hotch communicating to them through the sliding rear window the whole way down. They drove and an agonizingly slow pace in an effort to cause the least amount of movement to their fragile cargo and after a short eternity they drove over the last small hill and could see the ambulance ahead of them.

"Thank god." JJ breathed and turned to yell out the rear window. "There's the ambulance Hotch, how you guys doing?"

"Ready to be out of the truck." He answered solemnly before letting the medics know they had made it.

As soon as they came to a complete stop, the paramedics hopped out of the waiting ambulance and wasted no time in helping KC and Doug pull the backboard from the truck and transfer Prentiss onto the gurney. Medical jargon that none of them understood was barked back and forth between both sets of medics and finally they loaded the gurney into the back of the ambulance. As soon as the ambulance crew had taken over Emily's care, KC and Doug came back to help Morgan from the truck and into the back of the ambulance as well.

Hotch stared into the back of the ambulance at the bottom of Emily's mud soaked shoes and found himself trapped in a surreal state of mind that they were finally getting off the mountain and at the moment, they all had survived.

"Come on Hotch." Dave got his attention, "Go with them and get checked out. We'll follow you in the truck."

The drive to the hospital was a blur and the moment they arrived, the three members of the team were consumed by a tornado of doctors and nurses yelling out medical orders and questions to the paramedics before splitting off into groups and vanishing down separate corridors leaving Rossi, Reid and JJ standing alone in the aftermath.

"Come on," Rossi finally spoke putting a hand on each of their shoulders, "Let's get you two cleaned up and checked out."

"I'm fine Rossi." JJ protested even as she let him usher her toward the waiting area.

"JJ, you've been traipsing through the woods in the rain for nearly twenty-four hours. You need to get cleaned up and get something to eat. I'll have a deputy drive you back to the hotel. Before you even say anything Reid, you're getting checked out by a doctor."

Reid quickly closed his mouth that he had opened to protest and then nodded silently before following them down the hall to patient admitting to find a doctor.

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><p>Rossi had been sitting alone in the patient waiting area for nearly two hours when the loud clacking of wooden heels announced the arrival of one very upset looking Penelope Garcia. She spotted him immediately when he looked up over the top of the newspaper article he had been staring at without really reading for the good portion of the hour.<p>

"Rossi, what happened? Is Morgan alright? Please God tell me everyone is alright!" she asked before pulling him into a tight hug and then pushing him away to look at him.

"I haven't heard anything yet?"

"Did you see them? How did they look?"

Her teary eyes pleaded with him for something, anything but not knowing and he motioned for her to sit down. He fought the images of their friend on the backboard while he spoke and knew immediately that he couldn't share that experience with her.

"They're going to be fine Penelope. Morgan and Hotch both walked in here on their own accord. Morgan lost quite a bit of blood, but they're taking good care of them."

"What about Emily?"

"I don't know." He confessed. "We're just going to have to wait until someone comes out and talks to us."

"Where are JJ and Reid?" she sniffed and looked around as if just realizing they were in the room alone.

"JJ went back to the hotel to get cleaned up and Reid is in getting checked out."

"Checked out? Why? What's the matter with Reid?" her panic rose again.

"He's fine Penelope." He assured her, "He was in a car accident yesterday, we're just being cautious."

At the mention of this the realization hit Rossi. The accident was only yesterday. It seemed like such a long time ago. It felt as if they had been missing for a week.

"So we just wait?"

Her voice pulled his attention back to the present and he gave her a sympathetic smile.

"We wait."

* * *

><p>Shortly after Garcia's arrival JJ emerged from the elevator looking slightly refreshed without all the mud and rain coating her clothes and face. She carried a tray of Styrofoam coffee cups and her eyes went wide when Garcia shot up from her chair and pulled her into a desperate hug.<p>

"Oh JJ, are you okay?" Garcia said into her ear before pulling away. "I came as fast as I could."

JJ tried to give her a smile but it came out more of a grimace and she settled for nodding yes. She offered Rossi and Garcia each a cup which they accepted eagerly and she set the remaining container on the small magazine table.

"I thought Reid would have been out by now." She said to Rossi, "have you heard anything?"

Rossi shook his head no, but their growing worry was stamped out when the genius stepped around the corner next to them, tugging at the strap of the sling around his arm. He had also washed his face and wore set of dark green hospital scrubs that made him look like a young intern from any of the various medical dramas that littered the television.

"Are you okay?" JJ asked him, offering him the remaining coffee cup.

"Yeah." He answered quickly. "It's just a sprained shoulder. They gave me these just in case, but it doesn't really hurt." He said as he set a small orange pill bottle on the table and glared at it. "Have you heard anything yet?"

She shook her head and turned forward in her chair to scowl at the coffee cup in her hands. When it refused to give her any peace of mind she sat forward in her chair and rubbed her hands over her face.

"God I hate this waiting."

"I'm gonna go see if I can find a nurse or somebody and see if they can tell me anything." Rossi announced while standing and giving them a reassuring smile before walking away.

He doubted that any of the nurses at the nurse's station would know anything or tell him if he asked, but he used the walk to clear his mind. Dave Rossi was not the type of man that got close to people. He tended to keep his personal life and his professional life miles away from each other and both at an arm's length away from getting too close to his heart. Somehow this team had chiseled away at his defenses and suddenly he realized he had a family that was closer to him than any of his ex wives ever had. They had become his family and right now, three of them were hurting. Aaron Hotchner, who had, in some ways, become like a brother to him, was the foundation in which the team was built. Regardless of his title as the leader of the team, Hotch had always had an equal respect for every member of the team and he trusted them beyond any words he would ever express. He smiled as he thought of Derek Morgan and Emily Prentiss. Some days they reminded him of teenage siblings, picking at each other and constantly firing at each other with sarcastic banter. But when the time came to get down to business the duo was a force to be reckoned with.

Now, as he walked through the busy halls of the hospital, past doctors that held their lives in their hands, he couldn't help but to think what if. What if one of them didn't make it? What if neither of them did? Would Morgan ever be the same without the daily bickering and jovial banter? Would any of them?

"Dave?"

The voice caught him off guard and he whipped his head around to see Hotch walking slowly toward him.

"Aaron. Are you alright?"

"Some bruises and mild concussion, I'll be fine. I was just on my way out to join you."

"JJ, Reid and Garcia are in the waiting room."

"Have you heard anything yet?"

"I was on my way to the nurse's station to ask." He said shaking his head.

Hotch nodded and joined him as they walked down the hall and around the corner to the nurse's station and addressed the woman behind the desk.

"Excuse me," Rossi asked flashing his badge when she looked up. "I'm Special Agent Rossi. Two of our agents were brought in my ambulance a few hours ago. We were wondering there was any word on their conditions yet."

She glanced from his badge to his face before settling on the spattering of cuts and bruises that covered Hotch's face.

"I can check for you. What are their names?"

"Derek Morgan and Emily Prentiss."

She dug through a stack of papers and files on the desk for a moment before turning back to the computer in front of her and typing away at the keyboard. After a few minutes, she finally found what she was looking for and spoke without looking away from the screen.

"I have an Emily Prentiss up in the ICU and Derek Morgan was taken into surgery. I'm sorry I don't know any more than that."

She looked back up at them with sympathy and Rossi thanked her before he and Hotch turned and walked back toward the waiting room. When they rounded the corner to the waiting room, they saw a man in blue scrubs talking to the team and they sped up the pace to join them. The doctor turned at their arrival and acknowledged them with a firm handshake.

"Agents." He nodded to each of them. "I'm Doctor Tanner. I'm Agent Prentiss's attending physician. Please have a seat."

He motioned to the stiff chairs next to where Reid and Garcia were already sitting. Hotch, Rossi and JJ continued to stand, glaring at the young doctor and he finally conceited and continued.

"As I'm sure you are aware, Emily was involved in a vehicle accident yesterday morning where she sustained a pretty substantial head injury. I believe that during the accident she also received blunt force trauma to the chest from the impact which caused an injury to one of her lungs. The damage to the lung resulted in a buildup of air within the chest cavity called a pneumothorax.

The team stayed silent, letting the information sink in while the doctor looked between them and continued.

"The time in the woods with her wounds untreated eventually led her to suffer respiratory distress that had to be treated with an emergency intubation by the field medics. However, we were able to release the excess air in her chest to relieve the pressure on her lungs and while she is on a ventilator to regulate her breathing for the time being, I am confident that we'll be able to remove it in a day or two depending on the reaction to her head injury."

"Why didn't she know who I was?" JJ asked quietly, pulling all eyes to her as she wrapped her arms around herself in discomfort.

"The secondary blow to she received to the head exacerbated her previous injury and resulted in some subdural swelling. It isn't uncommon for someone with this type of injury to be confused and sometimes even to become combative with people they would otherwise be very comfortable with. We currently have her sedated to allow some time for the swelling to go down and hopefully we'll be able to wake her up in a day or two."

"So she's gonna be okay?" Garcia asked with a sniffle and wiped at her nose with a tissue.

"It's going to be a long road for her and while head injuries like these can sometimes be unpredictable, I expect her to make a full recovery in few weeks." He smiled as he finished and the team released a collective breath of relief.

"What about Agent Morgan?" Hotch asked and the doctor shuffled through the papers in his hand and pulled out a chart before speaking.

"Agent Morgan suffered a knife wound to the lower abdomen. He was taken up to surgery where they were able to control the bleeding and tend to the damages done. When he came in he had lost quite a bit of blood so he'll be pretty tired and sore for awhile, but we expect him to pull through just fine. Overall I would say your agents were very lucky."

Hotch scowled at the doctor as he shook their hands and answered a few more of their questions. He didn't feel very lucky. Two of his friends were seriously hurt and Emily wasn't even breathing on her own. The doctor had said he suspected a full recovery, but until both of them were awake and talking to him, he couldn't let himself be relieved.

"When can we see them?" he asked when the doctor moved to shake his hand.

"I can take two of you up to the ICU to see Agent Prentiss now and when they're finished settling Agent Morgan into his room, I'll send someone down to get the rest of you."

JJ watched the doctor speak to Hotch and when he turned back to look at her, her chest tightened around her heart. She wanted to go see Emily, but after their experience on the mountain, she was terrified at what sight awaited them in the ICU. Hotch watched her for a moment, giving her time to process his silent request to accompany him. Finally she took a shaky breath and nodded before handing her coffee cup to Garcia and following Hotch and the doctor down the hallway

They followed Doctor Tanner silently down the corridors of the hospital and past the double doors of the Intensive Care Unit before they came to a stop in front of a slightly opened door and the doctor turned to face them.

"As I said before, she is heavily sedated and there is a ventilator helping her breathe. There are a lot of machines that may look kinda scary, so just take a moment to prepare yourselves if you need to."

He gave them a reassuring smile and left them alone in the hallway. Hotch watched JJ take another shaky breath and wipe at the tears in her eyes that threatened to fall. Once she appeared to have straightened up he took a second to steel himself before leading them into the room.

The steady beeping of a heart monitor and the rhythmic hiss of the ventilator was almost deafening in the silence of the small room. They walked slowly around the edge of the bed, careful not to bump into any of the machines before taking in the sight of their friend. The cuts on her face had been cleaned and the gash on her forehead stitched and bandaged. Despite the deep bruises across her jaw and forehead, she was paler then they had ever seen her.

JJ wanted to scoop up her hand and reassure her that they were there and that everything was going to be alright, but the tube running from the back of her hand to the IV bag hanging from the stand at the head of the bed deterred her. Instead she crossed her arms over her chest and watched the ventilator as it forced air through the tube in her mouth and her chest rose in an oddly artificial motion before falling with a mechanical hiss. A few seconds of nothing but the beeping of the heart monitor passed and then the motion repeated.

Hotch wasn't sure what to do with himself. He took in the scene, quickly noticing the tube running near her chest from under the light blanket that covered her and ran down the side of the bed and disappeared into a plastic container. The container held a small number of tubes with what looked like a small amount of blood in one tube and slightly bubbling water in another. He made a mental note to ask Doctor Tanner about the purpose of it later. The machine made him uneasy with its bubbling so he turned his attention to the heart monitor, which was the only piece of equipment he was familiar with. He found small solace in the thin blue line as it beeped up and down in a steady even pattern, assuring him that she was alive, regardless of how terrible she looked.

"We have to find him Hotch."

JJ's barely audible voice pulled him from his thoughts and he turned his head to look at her. JJ had her arms crossed over her chest and she stared down at Emily's face, ignoring the trail of tears that had snuck past her eyelashes and down her cheek. It took him a moment to process what she had said. Ben Lambert had escaped. There were teams out searching the woods for him and they had issued an APB to local hospitals but as of yet, they had no sight of him. She took his silence that he hadn't heard her and she spoke slightly louder the second time.

"He can't get away with this." Her voice quivered and cracked and she turned to look at him through teary blue eyes.

"He won't Jayje. We'll find him."

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><p><em>Author's Note: So, what'd you all think? Special thanks to <strong>CrAzYMuNkY<strong> for all of your help in the medical details! You're awesome and kudos for all you do in your job! I think I may have a few more chapters left in me for this story before I end it and start working on the sequel. Click it and let me know what you think!_


	16. Chapter 16

_Author's Note: Well folks, this chapter is a little slow, but it was necessary. Can't always have your heart beating out of your chests in suspense now can I? Hope you enjoy it regardless. Oh, and as always, Thanks for your reviews! Read on._

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><p>Reid and Rossi sat quietly at a small rollaway table playing with a deck of cards that a friendly nurse named Karen had brought to them from the hospital gift shop. After they had been ushered into Morgan's room and told he would likely be sleeping for at least a few hours, they had made themselves as comfortable as possible. After fussing over Morgan's appearance for a few minutes when they first entered the room, Garcia finally had sat herself into the chair next to his bed and now was playing an online game of chess on her cell phone.<p>

"Oh you sneaky girl." She said to the phone when her online opponent surprised her with the capture of her queen.

"I'm trying to sleep Garcia."

Morgan's rough voice had her bolting upright in her chair, dropping the phone to the floor with a clatter and causing Reid and Rossi to jump in surprise before standing up and approaching the bedside with smiles.

"Derek! Oh my God, are you alright?" she stuttered and ran her hand carefully over his forehead.

Morgan raised his eyebrows at her, not quite willing to open his eyes just yet. At the persistent hands on his forehead and shoulder, he offered her a drowsy smile.

"I'm fine Penelope."

The hand on his shoulder lifted and came back down in a careful slap.

"Don't you ever do that to me again! Do you understand me?" she scolded him and he chuckled.

"I'll try."

Finally he took a deep breath and felt the light pull of the stitches in his side and a dull pain that indicated he was on some heavy pain killers. The memory of the time on the mountain and their confrontation with the Unsubs came flooding back to his tired brain and he forced his eyes open to look at Garcia. Her bright eye shadow was smeared to dull highlights from the numerous times she'd rubbed her hands over her face to calm her nerves and her mascara was nonexistent, having been washed away by tears and Kleenex. He made deliberate eye contact and gave her a soft smile.

"You scared me." She confessed and sat down, pulling her chair up close to the bed and grabbing his hand for her own comfort more than for his.

"I'm sorry Pen."

She took a deep breath, glaring at him for a moment before lifting her hand, kissing her fingers and pressing them firmly against his forehead, showing him that he'd been forgiven for scaring the daylights out of her. They shared a smile and Reid and Rossi finally came into focus at the foot of the bed.

"What's the word on Emily" Derek asked, blinking to clear his vision and bring them into focus.

Their smiles fell and Reid's eyes went to the floor. Morgan's heart sank.

"They said they think she's gonna be alright. Hotch and JJ are in with her." Garcia answered quietly.

"What happened to her?"

"She had some sort of chest injury from the roll over that eventually led to some respiratory distress." Rossi replied.

"A pneumothorax." Reid added in a matter of fact.

"A pneumo what?"

"A pneumothorax. It's a small collection of air within the chest that can separate the lungs from the chest wall and can sometimes collapse a lung completely." He rattled off the facts as they filled his brain and motioned to areas of his chest with his good hand. "When gone untreated it can eventually lead to a tension pneumothorax which will cause pressure on all the other organs in the chest cavity and can easily be fatal."

They stared blankly at him and he immediately knew he had gone into more detail than they had needed.

"But, thankfully Emily didn't have either of those." He added sheepishly and stuck his hand deep into his pocket.

"She's gonna be alright though right?" Morgan asked looking to each of his friends for a straight, easy to understand answer.

"Yes." Rossi answered for everyone. "We spoke with her doctor and he expects her to make a full recovery in a few weeks. They're just keeping a close eye on her until they know how she's going to react to her head injury."

"She's had concussions before. She's got a hard head." Morgan joked and Garcia gave him a weak smile.

After he processed the information he let his head fall back into the pillow, suddenly exhausted. The short rush of adrenaline at the panic of worrying about the well being of his friend had physically drained him.

"Sleep Morgan." Rossi told him with a pat on his foot. "We'll be here when you wake up."

Morgan didn't need any more encouragement and let his eyes drift closed. In minutes he was sound asleep and Reid and Rossi slowly went back to their game of gin. Garcia stared at her best friend while he slept for a few more minutes before retrieving her phone from the floor and closing the forgotten chess game and opening up and internet search engine. She glanced around at her friends, letting herself be thankful that they had gotten everyone back. It had been a close call this time. She let herself smile at her boys and then typed into the search engine, bringing up unlimited pages of links for the category. If she was going to help with tracking down the animal that had hurt her family, she was going to have to educate herself to the world of outdoor recreation and survival.

Halfway down the page a link caught her attention and she clicked on it bringing up the website of a "world renowned" tracking instructor and survival expert named Nicholas Wilks. She navigated through the website as quickly as her cell phone network would allow, reading through the expert's biography page and numerous travel journals from all over the world. The man even had two pages of letters and recommendation from various Rescue teams nationwide thanking him for his help in tracking down lost children, missing hikers and even one escaped convict from Northern California. An idea hit her and she snuck a look up at Reid and Rossi, watching them play for a moment before her eyes settled on the sling around Reid's shoulder that he squirmed uncomfortably against and she made a decision. She clicked on the link labeled 'contact us' and typed at the small keyboard quickly before sending the brief email with a grin. With the team indisposed with their injuries and the search teams coming up empty in their search for the man that called himself a hunter, maybe it was time she just hired a hunter of her own.

* * *

><p>In the ICU, Hotch had been staring at the heart monitor for what seemed like an eternity until the blue line blurred into the background and he would blink and watch Emily's unmoving features for awhile before he finally gave in. It was time to make the inevitable phone call. He stood and stretched out his back, ignoring the pull at his bruised ribs and turned to look at JJ. She sat curled up into a wide visitors chair and had eventually let the monotonous melody of the machines lull her to sleep. He quietly pulled a folded blanket from the counter next to him and set it over her without disturbing her. He took one last glance at Emily and when he was satisfied that nothing would happen while he was gone, he stepped out into the hallway and pulled his phone from his pocket. He took a deep breath and dialed the number to the DC office. Rossi had made the initial call to their boss, informing her that they had found the missing members of the team and were enroute to the hospital. Strauss had made it clear that she expected to be updated as soon as they received information and Hotch thought it best the information come straight from him.<p>

After the brief conversation with Strauss was over, Hotch tucked the phone back into his pocket and made his way slowly to the elevators at the end of the hallway and pressed the button for the third floor. The elevator arrived at its destination quickly and he stepped off and strode over to the nurse's station.

"Can I help you?" the young woman at the desk asked with a gentle smile.

"Derek Morgan's room please?"

"Oh, he's in room 214. Down the hall, make a left and it's the second or third door on the right. Can't miss it."

"Do you have twenty-four hour security on the hospital floors?" he asked, and her smile dropped to a twist in confusion.

"Yes sir. We have security guards, and surveillance cameras. Something they can help you with?"

"Who do I need to talk to about having security posted outside the ICU for a little while, until I can get someone here to replace them?"

"Oh, well, the security supervisor I would imagine. Would you like me to page him for you?"

"Yes please."

The nurse picked up the phone on the desk and quickly dialed in the extension for the security office and requested the supervisor come to the desk. After a few minutes, a tall burly man in a grey polo shirt with the hospital name embroidered across the chest approached the desk and introduced himself. Hotch explained who he was and made his request and the man eagerly accepted the duties.

"If they don't have a badge or they don't work there, they don't get near that room, understand?" Hotch ordered gruffly.

The guard nodded quickly and Hotch shook his hand before breaking off in search of the rest of his team. He stopped outside the door and took a deep breath, suddenly aware of how exhausted he was. He glanced down at his watch and was surprised to see it that they had already been at the hospital for nearly twelve hours. Shaking it off, he plastered his normal stoic look onto his face and entered the room.

Rossi and Reid looked up from their cards at him the instant they saw movement at the door and he acknowledged them with a nod. Garcia was sitting at Morgan's bedside, completely enthralled in something on her cell phone and hadn't seemed to notice him until he spoke.

"How is he?" he asked, looking at Morgan.

"He's alright. He was awake a little while ago. We filled him in on Prentiss." Rossi replied.

"I assigned hospital security to Emily's room until we can get one of our own here. Lambert would have to be an idiot to come here, but I'm not taking any chances. JJ is still in with her right now, but it's getting late and we're all exhausted. I called the motel across the street and reserved a couple of rooms, I think we should all go and get some rest. It's been a long couple of days." Hotch announced quietly.

"Can we see Emily first?" Reid asked meekly as he carefully tucked the cards back into their box.

"Yeah. Check in with the nurse at the desk and she'll let you in. Send JJ out to go get some sleep at the motel so another one of you can go in. One of the security guards should be there to post outside of the ICU doors. I'm gonna finish up with some paperwork here and then head over to the motel and get some sleep."

As Reid and Rossi slunk out of the room, Hotch grabbed Rossi's arm and when he turned to look at him he whispered to him.

"Dave, even after security gets there, can you hang out until one of us comes back?"

"You didn't have to ask. I wasn't going anywhere anyway."

Rossi gave him a smirk and Hotch let them leave before turning to Garcia who sat next to the bed as if she were weighted to her chair.

"How you holding up?" Hotch asked her as he stepped up to the bedside.

"I'm better now that I know what's going on." She answered quietly not to disturb Derek. "If you don't mind sir, I promised Morgan I'd be here when he woke up again, and I don't think I could go to sleep even if I wanted to."

The request for him to let her stay pleaded from her eyes and he quickly gave in, nodding his approval. He stood quietly, leaning against the table deep in thought for a few minutes before she spoke again.

"Sir?" Garcia's voice was very quiet, "How is Emily, really?"

He fought the images of their friend lying in the hospital bed, unmoving with the tubes and machines sustaining her and his ears rung with the incessant beeping. Then he quickly thought back to her appearance back at the mine. She had been soaked to the bone, dirty and had blood dripping down the side of her face and staining her shirt. The look of pure agony sketched across her face with every movement and that horrible sound of the wheezing and coughing that came when she tried to breathe. As intimidating as all the machines looked now, at least Emily looked at peace in her sleep and that was much better.

"Hotch?"

Garcia's quiet voice pulled him back from his thoughts and he shook his head to clear the images. His concussion must be making it more difficult to concentrate. Garcia's curious eyes begged him for an honest answer and he knew that she had prepared herself for one. So he sat down in the chair next to her and he told her the truth.

"I don't know." He stated simply. "She's critical for now and until the swelling in her brain goes down, we won't really know anything."

Garcia had a feeling that she would receive an answer like that from Hotch, but the depth of it rattled her nonetheless. She sniffed and took a shaky breath, refusing to let herself cry anymore and Hotch asked the question she was hoping to avoid.

"Are you gonna go see her?"

"I don't know if I can handle seeing her like that right now Hotch." She confessed, and despite her efforts, tears escaped her eyes. "If something happens, I don't know if I could handle that being the last image of her that I will ever have. But I'm also scared to death that if something happens, I would have never had the chance to say goodbye or tell her how much she means to me."

"Just give yourself some time Penelope. Let your nerves settle down and then if you feel comfortable, she'll be there."

Garcia sniffed against the tears and wiped her hands over her face, nodding quickly. A few minutes later, a light knock at the door pulled at their attention and Hotch stood to greet the security guard.

"Hi, I'm Matt." The security guard introduced himself and Hotch shook his hand. "I just wanted to get to know the faces of people allowed in, so I don't have to check your badges every time."

"Check them anyway." Hotch ordered firmly and Matt's face fell. "I don't care if you see us a hundred times before you're relieved by a deputy. If they don't have a badge and ID that matches their face, they don't get in, understand?"

"No badge, no entry. Got it."

Hotch shook his hand again and walked back into the room, closing the door behind him and took a seat at the table where Rossi and Reid had been playing cards.

"Aren't you going to go get some sleep now that security is here?" Garcia asked eyeing the closed door.

"I'm not leaving the well being of my people up to someone I don't know." He answered firmly. "He's just here for extra peace of mind."

Garcia raised her eyebrows at him and gave him a small grin.

"Besides, I'm not supposed to sleep for too long with my alleged concussion anyway."

"Oh come on now Hotch. I'm sure Rossi wouldn't mind sharing a room with you so he could wake you up every so often." She teased and Hotch gave her a rare grin.

"Shut up and play on your phone."

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><p><em>Author's Note: Poor exhausted team. Gotta let them rest up before getting their blood pumping again. Though the story is coming to a close soon, I have already written the first chapter of the sequel, whoohoo for motivation! Let me know what you think! <em>


	17. Chapter 17

_Author's Note: Guess whose back...that's right ME. My apologies for leaving you all hanging but this chapter was so hard for me to get out. Its been a really long week and I just had a really hard time getting motivated enough to do it. But I digress, here it is. Enjoy!_

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><p>The night passed without incident and the team took turns sitting with their injured friends. Reid and Rossi had spent an hour sitting with Emily before Reid joined JJ at the motel for some sleep. After his trip through the woods, he was more than a little exhausted and was asleep only minutes after lying down. True to his word, Rossi had spent the entire night at Emily's bedside, lightly dozing in one of the large chairs and waking up when the nurses would come in to check the monitors and occasionally add another dose of some kind of medication into her IV. Late into the morning, JJ checked in with Hotch and Garcia in Morgan's room and then returned to the ICU with coffee for the Sheriff's deputy that had relieved the hospital's security guard at some point during the night.<p>

"Any change?" she asked Rossi as he stood and stretched out his sore muscles. He shook his head no and she gave him a sympathetic smile.

"Did you check in on Morgan?

"Yeah. Spence is hanging out with him. Hotch just left with Garcia to get breakfast before they head back to the motel for some sleep. Why don't you join them?"

"You gonna hang out here?" he asked as he picked up his coat from the chair and slung it over his arm.

"Yep." She raised her coffee in one hand a paperback book that she had retrieved from her go bag in the other, showing him that she had come prepared for the long haul.

Rossi smiled at her and left the room, patting the deputy on the shoulder, thanking him for his diligence on his way out and when he reached the 2nd floor, he stepped into Morgan's room. Morgan was sitting up a little higher and was in a quiet conversation with Reid and they both turned to look at him.

"I'm heading out, do either of you need anything before I go?"

"I've got all the jello I could ever eat, what more could I need?" Morgan joked.

Rossi gave him a smile, happy to see he was feeling better, even if he was drugged up. He told them goodnight and made his way out to the motel for a few hours of sleep.

Reid spent most of the morning visiting with Morgan, playing cards and watching the silent tv mounted on the wall. When Morgan drifted off, Reid pulled out the deck of cards and played a couple games of solitaire. When he got bored of that, he practiced some of his card tricks and kept himself entertained. Early into the afternoon, Garcia returned looking rested and refreshed, her normal brightly colored makeup applied. Morgan awoke to the clacking of her heels the moment she stepped off the elevator down the hall and he wiped the sleep from his eyes before she entered.

They couldn't help but smile when she peeked her head around the enormous bouquet of brightly colored flowers and the three attached balloons chased after her, bobbing happily off the doorframe as she entered with a smile.

"Good morning Princess." He greeted with a smile.

"I'll show you a good morning hotstuff." She replied and moved to set the flowers on the nightstand. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel pretty good actually. I would kill for a burger right now though."

"I don't even think you're allowed to eat a burger right now," she teased, plopping down in her chair, "but I'd hate to have to explain someone's death over it. I'm sure Rossi could bring you something when he comes back."

"Has anyone said when I might be getting out of here?" Morgan asked and Garcia rolled her eyes at him.

"Geez Derek, you've only been here for a day. You were stabbed in the stomach you know. You're just lucky the knife didn't hit anything really vital!"

"Only his ego." Reid added with a smirk.

"Oh come on now Reid. My ego is just fine."

The two men joked for a few more minutes before Morgan's attention was drawn to Garcia, who hadn't said a word during their banter and had her nose turned down to her phone as she typed away.

"Whatcha doin over there Baby Girl?" Derek asked, getting her attention.

"Huh? Oh, I'm doing some research."

"Research on what?"

Garcia shifted uncomfortably in her chair before dropping her shoulders in defeat against his arched eyebrows. He knew her too well.

"Penelope?" His voice held an edge of suspicion.

"Oh alright, I was doing some research on outdoor recreation and survivalists so that maybe I could help them find the guy that hurt you guys. I found this really hardcore survival and tracking expert in Colorado who's like huge in the game of finding people. I was thinking maybe since the team is on downtime because you're all hurt, that maybe we could enlist his help as a consultant or something."

Reid and Morgan stared at her silently for a moment before Reid spoke.

"Did you run that idea past Hotch?"

"No. His plate is sorta full with everything going on with Emily. Besides I only just sent an email asking if he was possibly available."

"I think it's a good idea." Morgan gave her a grin.

"Really?" she sounded surprised and looked to Reid when he spoke.

"With the team down and the search team coming up empty, he's just getting further away. It couldn't hurt to get someone as versed in the environment and skilled as Lambert is." Reid agreed.

"Just make sure to present it to Hotch first ok Mama?" Morgan instructed and she nodded ecstatically and stood to leave.

"Hey, pump those brakes Girl. Where are you going?"

"To find Hotch. I want to get on this fast before he gets any further away."

"I think Hotch is on his way up to see Emily." Reid replied and she froze. "They only allow two people in there at a time, but I'm sure JJ would come out and let you go in for awhile."

Garcia stood near the door contemplating for a few seconds before slowly walking back to her chair and sitting.

"You okay?" Morgan asked and she refused to look at him.

"I'm terrified of seeing her like that. Does that make me a bad friend?"

"No, it doesn't make you a bad friend. Prentiss knows you love her. You don't have to be there watching her sleep for her to know that." Morgan answered and nudged her knee with his hand to make her look at him. When she did he offered her a big smile. "Just send Hotch a text. He'll come down and talk to you when he's done."

* * *

><p>It was close to 3pm and JJ had been quietly reading her book all afternoon when she was distracted by a slightly lower pitched beep from the monitor at Emily's side. She set her book in her lap and watched it for a few minutes, listening to the same high pitched tones that had been present since they first had entered the room yesterday. When the odd tone didn't happen again, she shrugged it off and picked up her book to continue reading. Fifteen minutes later the tone beeped again and she marked her spot in the book's pages and stood. Before she could move toward the bed, a nurse she had come to know as Sarah entered the room and offered her a smile. JJ sat back down and watched as the nurse checked over the monitor, then made a few notes in Emily's chart.<p>

"Everything okay?" JJ asked nervously.

"Oh, her body temp is just a little high, that's all." She answered quietly as if she would wake the sedated woman. "It's actually pretty common with something like this. I'm really not surprised after all the time you all were out in that weather."

With this new information, JJ studied the monitor and located the temperature reading of 100 degrees on the top left corner. The number wasn't exactly high as far as temperatures went. JJ had recently dealt with much higher fevers with Henry and his cold a few weeks prior. Sarah gave her another warm smile and sat down on the arm of the chair near the door.

"What are you reading?"

"Oh," JJ blinked at her and lifted the book to hand to her. "Too kill a Mockingbird."

The nurse raised an eyebrow at her and took the offered book, flipping it over to read the back cover and then handed it back to her.

"Ya know, I've seen the movie, love the story, but have never actually read the book."

"It's one of my favorites."

The monitor beeped again and Sarah's eyebrows furrowed into a gentle scowl. She stood and took a closer look at the monitor and released a small grimace. JJ noticed it immediately and glanced over her shoulder from her seat and noted the temperature display now read 101. The nurse looked uncomfortable as she quickly checked over the IV lines in the back of Emily's hand and then announced she would be right back before making a hasty exit from the room.

Now more than a little alarmed, JJ stood and moved to stand next to the bed and looked from the monitor to her friend. To someone who didn't know the agent, she may have appeared to be sleeping comfortably, despite the breathing tube. But to JJ, the subtle tint of color to her cheeks looked odd and dangerous. A light flicker of movement caught JJ by surprise and she had to blink to make sure she hadn't imagined it. No, Emily's eyebrow had definitely just twitched, which was the only movement she had seen of her since they first arrived at the hospital yesterday morning.

"Emily?" JJ called out softly and carefully wrapped her hand around Emily's fingers.

Her eyebrow twitched again and held a slight scowl and JJ's heart jumped in her chest. Emily was waking up.

"Hold on Em, I'm gonna grab a nurse."

The next few minutes happened in a blur of activity. The moment JJ stepped out into the hall, she saw Hotch walking toward her. The look on her face must have shown her excitement because his pace quickened and he was instantly at her side.

"What happened?" he asked as soon as he was closer enough for her to hear him.

"I think she's waking up." She responded and immediately noticed Sarah and Doctor Tanner walking in their direction. Both of them held tense expressions and Sarah appeared to be explaining something important to the doctor.

A sudden high pitched wail had JJ and Hotch spinning around to face back to Emily's room. Before either of them could process what was happening, they were being shoved aside by a swarm of nurses that had appeared out of nowhere. JJ spun around, catching a bright white flash of Tanner's coat as he and Sarah flew passed them and into the room.

It took every ounce of will power that Hotch could muster not to rush into the room and demand to know what was happening. Instead he stood in the doorway with JJ, watching the medical staff surrounding his friend and shouting out orders over the wail of the monitor.

Doctor Tanner had just sat down to eat his cafeteria ham sandwich and read the morning newspaper when Sarah walked into the lounge looking concerned.

"Agent Prentiss as a fever." She stated matter of factly.

"I don't doubt it." He said around the food in his mouth, "She was running through the cold rain with a pneumo for two days. Just keep monitoring it."

"I am monitoring it Jason." She sighed as he took another bite. "And it's climbing fast."

This got his attention and he stood, setting down his newspaper and stole a swig of his soda to wash down his food.

"What's her temp?" he asked as they walked out of the lounge and toward the room.

As Sarah filled him in on her short visit to the agent's room and her sudden spike in body temperature, he noticed the two agents standing outside their friend's doorway watching them. Just as he was attempting to send them his best reassuring smile, the loud wail of from the monitor in the room echoed in with the high pitched alert from the nurse's station next to them had them in flight.

His ears rang with the sounds of the squealing alarms and the squeaking of shoes on the tile as they pushed passed the two stunned agents in the hall and into the room in a flood of green and purple scrubs. His nursing team was fast and efficient as Sarah dropped the head of the bed down flat and removed the pillow from beneath the agent's head while Laura pulled a medical cart from the corner and closer to the bed, waiting for his orders.

"Temps 102." Sarah stated, eyeing the monitor and pulling some syringes from the med cart in preparation for the orders she predicted were coming.

"Emily?" Tanner called to her while shining his penlight into her eyes and was relieved when both pupils reacted properly and she attempted to blink against the harsh light.

His relief was short lived when her chin jerked forward as if she was choking and he could see the muscles in her neck and shoulders beginning to tense and the veins in her forehead bulged under stress. He swore and barked at the nurses.

"She's seizing! I need four milligrams Ativan. Nicki, secure that chest tube, make sure she doesn't rip it out."

The nurses snapped into actions. Sarah filled the syringe with the Ativan and injected it into the IV, Laura quickly disconnected the ventilator before attaching the bag to the ET tube and taking over manual ventilations and Nicki followed his instruction and attempted to anchor the chest tube on the tensing woman under them.

"Ativan on board." Sarah called out and held tightly to her hand to prevent the IV from being jarred or torn out.

"Damnit." Laura cursed quietly, "Doctor Tanner, the ET tube slipped. She's fighting it."

"Pull it." He ordered and watched the monitor as the Ativan took effect and his patient began to releax.

The nurses worked quickly in a well rehearsed dance in removing the ET tube and replacing it with a basic plastic mask and be he watched as it fogged with each shallow breath as she took in the oxygen enriched air. The alarms silenced their squawking and Tanner stuck the earpieces into his ears and listened to the crackling air movement in her lungs and quick thump of her heart rate, counting it against the second hand on his watch.

"Doctor Tanner," Sarah got his attention and when his eyes met hers she nodded down to the agent's face.

Her brow glistened in a light sheen of perspiration and her skin was flushed against her furrowed eyebrows and the slight twitching of her eyelids signaled her attempt to regain consciousness. Sarah gently wiped at the hair that had fallen and stuck to the sweat on her forehead and lightly coaxed her awake. Finally her eyelashes fluttered open and she blinked lazily a few times, eyes not focusing on anything, and stared straight up past the nurse to the ceiling.

"Hey there." Sarah spoke quietly to her, offering a friendly smile, attempting to get Emily to focus on her.

Hotch heard the quiet greeting the nurse had directed down to Emily and was no longer able to restrain himself to the hallway. He was at her side in an instant with JJ a few feet behind him.

"Laura, order me an MRI and CT scan. Also get some blood work down to the lab. We need to know why her temp is spiking." Tanner instructed while he pulled the penlight and again shone it into Emily's eyes. This time Emily blinked against the brightness and tried to turn her head away from him.

"Doctor?"

Tanner turned and was slightly surprised to see Hotch and JJ standing right behind him. Agent Hotchner's eyes silently pleaded with him for answers that he didn't have yet.

"I don't know yet Agent Hotchner. We're going to run a few tests but I have to ask you to step out until we get her stabilized again."

"How long?"

"I'll send someone for you."

* * *

><p><em>Author's Note: I have my doubts, was it worth the wait? I'm hoping to have this story wound down to a close in one, maybe two more Chapters. Are you ready to have your socks knocked off by my insane new villain in the sequel? That Review button looks cold and lonely, warm it up and let me know!<em>


	18. Chapter 18

_Author's Note: Well this is it boys and girls. My final chapter. I know its short, but it was very tough to write. I hope you enjoy it!_

* * *

><p>"Read 'em and weep boys." Garcia grinned as she set her three of a kind hand on the small table.<p>

Both men groaned and tossed their cards on the table in defeat while she collected her winnings of three pieces of gum, a rubber band and 4 left over pretzels from the bag Reid had retrieved from the vending machine.

"You're cheating." Reid teased, shuffling the cards.

"Oh get over it poor sport. I beat you for once."

"I let you win."

She rolled her eyes dramatically and they all shared a laugh. JJ entering the room simultaneously caught their attention and they smiled at her.

"Is Rossi back already?" Reid asked, turning his attention back to the cards.

"What happened?" Garcia blurted out, reading the expression on JJ's face was not that of simply being thrown out of Emily's room because Rossi wanted in.

JJ sat down and took a deep breath, eyes avoiding the eager expressions on their faces as she tried to organize her thoughts into speech. _Like a bandaide_ she told herself, _do it quickly._

"Emily had some kind of seizure." She spoke quietly to the floor. "They were able to stop it and it didn't last very long, but they have to run some tests to figure out what caused it."

Garcia gasped as soon as the words left her mouth and it hurt JJ to know her words had caused it.

"But she was awake and off the ventilator when they made us leave." She added the brighter news with a forced grin.

"Did she say anything?" Garcia asked, only slightly relieved by the news.

"No. She was pretty out of it. I don't even know if she knows where she is. She just sorta stared off into space for a few minutes and went back to sleep, but the Doctor said that was normal."

"It's called a postictal state which ordinarily happens to people that suffer a seizure." Reid rattled off, "It's basically just a short period that it takes the brain to recover from the trauma of a seizure. It's completely normal for her to be disoriented and confused."

"Is it dangerous?" JJ asked with a shaky breath.

"It depends on what the cause of it was."

"She has a fever. Would that cause it?"

"It depends on how high the fever is and how fast it got there. Seizures caused by high body temperature, or Febrile Seizures, are mostly seen in young kids with high fevers. But even a lower grade fever that had a rapid onset could technically cause one."

"So she's going to be okay?" Garcia asked, barely above a whisper.

"I don't know. They made us leave the room." JJ answered. "Hotch is still up there waiting for them to come back. He's going to call when they have something."

As solemn silence fell over the room as they all glanced around at each other, deep in thought but none willing to share. Finally JJ took a deep breath, forced a tired smile and sat down on the edge of Morgan's bed.

"Deal me in?"

* * *

><p>Hotch checked his watch for what had to be the fifteenth time, noting another hour had passed by and the doctor still hadn't come in with new information. Due to the order of having someone protecting Prentiss at all times, he had been allowed to wait for Emily to return from her MRI and CT scans and now sat in the hard chair next to her bed as she slept. The room was oddly silent without the rhythmic hissing of the ventilator, which the doctor had assured him she no longer needed. Instead she just wore a simple cannula loosely fitted under her nose to deliver a small amount of oxygen enriched air, which Hotch preferred much more to the ventilator.<p>

Light footsteps from the hallway announced the arrival of the doctor and Hotch stood to greet him at the door. Doctor Tanner smiled at him and motioned for him to step out into the hallway. Hotch complied, taking a quick look back at Prentiss, and crossed his arms over his chest, listening.

"Agent Hotchner, thank you for being so patient," Tanner began, hugging his clipboard to his chest. "We got the results of Emily's CT scans and it appears that the swelling in her brain has almost completely subsided. We are weaning her off the sedatives and she should start coming around soon. She's going to be really groggy for awhile, and may be disoriented when she wakes up, but that is expected and will go away with time."

"What about the fever?"

"The MRI results came back positive for early onset pneumonia, which I believe is the cause for the rapid raise in temperature. This could have been caused be anything from being exposed to weather or even from the field intubation. We have started her on heavy antibiotics which should take care of that in a few days and overall I expect her to make a fairly speedy recovery."

"Any estimate on when we can move her closer to home?"

"I would guess that without any further complications that she would be okay to be moved in a week or so."

Hotch nodded and gave the doctor a smile while he shook his hand and returned to the darkness of Emily's room. The nurses had come in a dimmed the lights down before Emily was returned from her trip to CT and MRI and told him that when she woke, she would be sensitive to the light. So now he sat in the dimly lit room next to her, listening to the heart monitor and watching her breathe and finally let himself relax. He sighed and picked up the book from the seat next to him, opening its pages and noting JJ's name written on the inside cover. He snuck a quick text message out to the team and turned his attention back to the book. He flipped to a random page in the center of the paperback and began reading. He hadn't read it since college, but he knew the story and his memory automatically filled in the pages he'd skipped.

* * *

><p>The symphony of various tones from their phones alerted all the members of the team in Morgan's room to the arrival of the short text.<p>

_PRENTISS IS OK. SHOULD BE AWAKE SOON. COME VISIT._

With the reading of the text the tension of the room lifted in a whoosh of relieved sighs and smiles. Garcia surprised them by shooting up from her seat and moving toward the hall.

"Do you guys mind if I go?" she asked as an afterthought from the door.

"Not at all." JJ smiled at her and the guys all shook their heads no and the technical analyst was off in a blur of bright yellow and clattering heels.

Garcia arrived at the ICU doors a few minutes later and quietly approached the nursing station, where a nurse pointed to Emily's door with a smile. She tiptoed to the door, the clacking of her heels sounding extra loud in the quietness of the ICU, and peeked into the dark. Her eyes adjusted to the change and she fully entered the room, not taking her eyes off of Emily as she greeted Hotch. He watched her with soft eyes as she slowly took the seat next to him.

"When JJ told us what happened," she started with a shutter, "all I could think about was that I wasn't here, and if she didn't come back from it, I never would forgive myself for being afraid of visiting."

"I told you, you'd come when you were ready." He said quietly to her, offering a gentle grin. He snorted back a hushed laugh.

"Yes Agent Hotchner. Of course you were right, as usual."

* * *

><p>Emily could hear hushed voices to her left but a high pitches beeping kept her from understanding what they were saying. She really just wanted to sink back into sleep but she couldn't fight the nagging in her brain that told her that something wasn't right. Her head didn't normally feel this heavy when she woke up in the morning for work and she forced herself to think about the reasons behind it. Perhaps if she just opened her eyes and asked the voices instead. As she felt the blanket of sleep lifting slightly, she realized she recognized the owner's of the voices. She swallowed a few times, surprised to find her throat raw and sore and the idea of speaking quickly gave away to the act of opening her eyes.<p>

Garcia's attention was ripped away from the light conversation she had been having with Hotch when she caught movement in the side of her eye as Emily turned her head on the pillow, facing them. She whispered Hotch's name and scooted closer to the bed as he stood. She watched Emily's throat move as she swallowed a few times and her eyebrows flinched and furrowed as if she were concentrating.

"Emily?" Garcia spoke softly, "Wake up."

Finally Prentiss forced her heavy eyelids to open, before blinking lazily a few times and attempting to smooth out the blurry darkness around her. Garcia grabbed her hand in a gentle grip and she when she finally focused on her face, her dark eyes slowly became more focused. Garcia watched nervously as her friend slowly woke but failed to show any signs of recollection of neither her nor Hotch standing in front of her.

" Hey Em." She whispered with a beaming smile.

Emily's eyes closed again, but she rewarded her with a lazy smile of her own and Garcia felt her nerves ease. She had seen her and recognized her. She had even smiled at her.

"You scared us."

Emily's eyes opened again, slightly more focused this time and she looked from Garcia to Hotch and again swallowed, testing her throat and still found it too raw to speak.

"Don't talk Prentiss." Hotch spoke, noticing her slight discomfort. "You're going to have a sore throat for a few days."

Emily wanted to ask him why, but she was finding it hard to keep her eyes open. She wanted to ask them what had happened on the mountain and why they both looked so ragged, but her body was not complying. Instead her eyes closed against her will and she felt herself sinking back into the persistent nagging of sleep.

Hotch and Garcia watched as she tried to fight the losing battle with sleep and Garcia grinned when she tightened her week grip on her hand before giving in and letting sleep reclaim her and for the first time since they had first gone missing, they both believed that everything was going to be okay.

* * *

><p>Ben Lambert stumbled through the tree line and onto the pavement of the old scenic road that lead into the deepest part of the national reserve. Breathing hard, he drug his feet as he walked down the side of the road away from Newport and the FBI Agents he knew were there. When he saw headlights approaching in the distance he quickly checked the shirt he had wrapped around the wound in his shoulder to make sure no blood was showing and forced himself up to his full height and ran his hand through his messy hair.<p>

As the pickup reached him, he stuck out his hand, thumb up, and squinted against the headlights as the truck slowed next to him. An old man in his leaned over the seat and cracked the lever to roll the passenger window down.

"What are you doing way out here son?" the man asked, taking in the site of him.

"I was camping with my girlfriend. We had a fight and she took off with the truck." He lied. "I'm just trying to get home."

"Where's home?"

"Way too far to walk." Ben laughed, "I just need to get to the airport. I can pay you for your trouble."

"Well, I'm heading to Rockford. There's a bus that can take you to the airport there."

Ben gave him the best smile he could muster and hid his grimace as he climbed into the old pickup. As the old man accelerated down the road, he introduced himself as Marvin, a rancher from Rockford who had been up in the woods doing some fishing for the last two days.

"I'm sorry son, I didn't catch your name." he said eyeing him and taking a swig of the beer he'd set between his knees.

"Oh, I'm Ben." He reached over and shook his hand trying not to laugh at the cliché of the old rancher drinking while driving.

"So to the air port huh? Where you headed?"

Ben thought for a moment, staring straight out the windshield of the pickup into the dark until he could no longer stop the menacing smile from creeping across his face and turned back to the old man.

"Washington D.C."

To Be Continued…

* * *

><p><em>Author's Note: Dun Dun Dunnn. I always wanted to write a "To Be Continued..." lol I hope you all enjoyed it and don't fret, I have already begun working on the sequel which I'm having a blast with! Thanks for sticking with me through all 18 chapters and for your amazing reviews that keep me going. Please review this chapter too and let me know how much you want the next installment! Motivation is great! Until our next adventure! RJ<em>


	19. Author's Note

_Author's Note: UPDATE_

_Thank you all for reading, reviewing, favoriting, and alerting The Hunt. You have given me a creative outlet, and a new hobby that I never expected to become so addicting. This story was my first, in hopefully a line of many, and I only hope to get better as I go. The Hunt has given not only a small "fan base" of readers, but I have made some great friends along the way! So to each of you that have set this story to alert, Thank you!_

_An important note: I know this story is complete, and has been for quite a while, but for those of you who may not know, The Sequel is posted! My other story is called Bullseye, and is the sequel to this one, and in my own opinion, is way better than this one! If you haven't already checked it out, go do it, I insist!_


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